So far today we cleared out our dresser drawers and linen closet. I was amazed that M pretty much wanted to throw (or give) almost everything away; I was afraid he had a great attachment to his shirts!!! We basically went from 4 dressers to 2, but we know there will need to be at least one more clothing downsize as we'll probably only have one 4 drawer dresser in the RV.
Got rid of a lot of towels and sheets; only kept 2 sets of queen size for our current bed (hopefully RV will have a queen sized bed).
Feeling very good. So far not having any attachment to possession issues.
Sunday, December 29, 2013
Wednesday, December 25, 2013
Moving very FAST!
I can only pray that the sale of the house goes as quickly as everything else is going right now. It's scary, exciting, and somewhat nerve wracking having moved from taking little baby steps for the past 3 years, to taking a giant leap and trying to get EVERYTHING done over the course of the next 2 weeks or so.
The contractors are literally pulling the rug up from under us. We had wanted to completely clean out each room before they started working, but they are basically just moving everything out of their way to do the work. So almost every closet and drawer and piece of furniture has been moved to different rooms. The place is utter chaos and will only get worse over the next few days. But that's all right... because once the work is done, we can do a better cleanup. Things will either be packed for the RV (probably not more than 3-4 boxes), put on the side to donate, sell (only if its worth more than $50) or put in the dumpster that's now in the driveway. The real cleaning out is happening right now!!!
Also, something else I hadn't anticipated would happen so quickly was finding a new home for the cats. My cousin will take 2 and my sister in law may know someone who can take the third. Worst case we will bring Nutmeg (who is 14) to the RV with us, but that is a total last resort. As much as we love him, he has never traveled before, he is old, and I think it may be too traumatic for him. Not to mention I don't want the litter box in the middle of the space nor do I want to keep the shower door open at all times. Just not enough space for him there. Not that we couldn't figure out a way if we really wanted to, but we don't.
We were also very fortunate that a relative loaned us a few dollars towards the repairs, so we may be able to get a fairly decent price after all. Since we don't have good furniture to show, the plan is to have the rooms completely empty. I kind of like that as well - I find furnishings too distracting. When looking at homes, my eye tends towards judging the furniture and decor rather than trying to picture how my stuff would look there. Much easier to imagine if there's nothing in there.
Accomplished so far:
-floors and painting replaced in the entire house except 1 bedroom (which will be done tomorrow)
- kitchen floor and counters replaced, new stove coming next week
- bathroom fixtures replaced
Still need to do:
- repaint house except bedrooms and kitchen
- replace garage and front doors
At this rate, all may be done by the end of next week and we may even be able to list the house by mid-January!
The contractors are literally pulling the rug up from under us. We had wanted to completely clean out each room before they started working, but they are basically just moving everything out of their way to do the work. So almost every closet and drawer and piece of furniture has been moved to different rooms. The place is utter chaos and will only get worse over the next few days. But that's all right... because once the work is done, we can do a better cleanup. Things will either be packed for the RV (probably not more than 3-4 boxes), put on the side to donate, sell (only if its worth more than $50) or put in the dumpster that's now in the driveway. The real cleaning out is happening right now!!!
Also, something else I hadn't anticipated would happen so quickly was finding a new home for the cats. My cousin will take 2 and my sister in law may know someone who can take the third. Worst case we will bring Nutmeg (who is 14) to the RV with us, but that is a total last resort. As much as we love him, he has never traveled before, he is old, and I think it may be too traumatic for him. Not to mention I don't want the litter box in the middle of the space nor do I want to keep the shower door open at all times. Just not enough space for him there. Not that we couldn't figure out a way if we really wanted to, but we don't.
We were also very fortunate that a relative loaned us a few dollars towards the repairs, so we may be able to get a fairly decent price after all. Since we don't have good furniture to show, the plan is to have the rooms completely empty. I kind of like that as well - I find furnishings too distracting. When looking at homes, my eye tends towards judging the furniture and decor rather than trying to picture how my stuff would look there. Much easier to imagine if there's nothing in there.
Accomplished so far:
-floors and painting replaced in the entire house except 1 bedroom (which will be done tomorrow)
- kitchen floor and counters replaced, new stove coming next week
- bathroom fixtures replaced
Still need to do:
- repaint house except bedrooms and kitchen
- replace garage and front doors
At this rate, all may be done by the end of next week and we may even be able to list the house by mid-January!
Thursday, December 19, 2013
Major milestone day!!!
Nothing that I haven't already reported on, but it occurred to me as I exited my corporate office for the last time today, that I am truly starting the Next Chapter of my life today.
Contractors are here and working very fast. One more room is finished (bedroom) and the kitchen will be worked on tomorrow. At this pace, the house may be ready to list in about 2 weeks.
Contractors are here and working very fast. One more room is finished (bedroom) and the kitchen will be worked on tomorrow. At this pace, the house may be ready to list in about 2 weeks.
Monday, December 16, 2013
Moving right along
The realtor took one look at our furnishings and agreed that we really need to get rid of anything we're not currently using. It will make the rooms look much larger and folks won't get distracted by such ugly stuff.
Dumpster is coming at the end of the week. Where we've been taking slow, baby steps for the past 3 years, suddenly we're forced to take a giant leap and move ahead very quickly.
Anticipating a LOT of stress and tension between me and M over all the things we need to throw or give away. The only items we'll put in storage are a few boxes of "maybe" stuff. We'll only pack the very bare minimum for the coach, but since we won't know how large (or small) it will be, there may be a chance we'll have more storage space than originally planned. And by additional stuff, I mean maybe a few extra pairs of jeans or sweaters, 2 suits instead of just 1, my Passover pots & pans. Stuff like that. M will have the most problem deciding about all his tools and computer components!
Dumpster is coming at the end of the week. Where we've been taking slow, baby steps for the past 3 years, suddenly we're forced to take a giant leap and move ahead very quickly.
Anticipating a LOT of stress and tension between me and M over all the things we need to throw or give away. The only items we'll put in storage are a few boxes of "maybe" stuff. We'll only pack the very bare minimum for the coach, but since we won't know how large (or small) it will be, there may be a chance we'll have more storage space than originally planned. And by additional stuff, I mean maybe a few extra pairs of jeans or sweaters, 2 suits instead of just 1, my Passover pots & pans. Stuff like that. M will have the most problem deciding about all his tools and computer components!
Wednesday, December 4, 2013
Ready to move on
Well, the job opportunity for M did indeed fall through. We only have enough $ in the bank for 2-3 months to pay bills, so we MUST sell the house REAL FAST. Meeting with realtor next week.
Nothing holding us back now. Once we sell, we can determine what kind of rig to get based on how much $ is left over. Certainly won't be the condo on wheels we were dreaming of (the DRV Mobile Suites with separate room for the office in the back), but hopefully it can be something decent.
We've wanted this day to come for the past 3 years. Maybe it took a traumatic event like this to push us towards it. Still feeling very scared, but I really should start getting excited.
Nothing holding us back now. Once we sell, we can determine what kind of rig to get based on how much $ is left over. Certainly won't be the condo on wheels we were dreaming of (the DRV Mobile Suites with separate room for the office in the back), but hopefully it can be something decent.
We've wanted this day to come for the past 3 years. Maybe it took a traumatic event like this to push us towards it. Still feeling very scared, but I really should start getting excited.
Wednesday, November 20, 2013
What a weird roller coaster ride!
My last post mentioned that although I was about to lose my job, M was being offered a job which would make up for the lost salary; pending a successful background check.
Yesterday we learned that due to a ridiculous, absurd semantical problem (his job description not matching his job title), they denied his application. This put us in a very scary predicament -- that both of us would, in effect, be unemployed. The only option was to sell the house as quickly as possible. The amount we have set aside for fixing it up could pay the mortgage for about 2 more months, so we would need to sell "as is" to avoid foreclosure. And then, where would we live? Who would rent an apartment to 2 unemployed people with a poor credit rating?
After losing a night of sleep, I was able to think of a Plan B, which is to sell the house with the hopes of getting at least $20-30K out of it, and use that to buy an old, used RV. Between M's pension and my unemployment, it would be enough to survive on the road, while building my business. Ok, it wouldn't be the condo on wheels we want; rather it would be a rusted tin box, but at least it would provide shelter and a place to live until we could build ourselves back up. I even found a craft that has good potential to sell well at street fairs.
Today, M got word that the HR manager was livid at the way things were handled and was able to convince the background check company to give him a second chance. They sent him a new application and he is starting the process over, this time making the corrections they found (making sure his job title matched).
So who is to say what path we will end up taking? Will we start our new chapter sooner than planned (no job), or later than planned (job)? Stay posted for the continuation of this saga.....
Yesterday we learned that due to a ridiculous, absurd semantical problem (his job description not matching his job title), they denied his application. This put us in a very scary predicament -- that both of us would, in effect, be unemployed. The only option was to sell the house as quickly as possible. The amount we have set aside for fixing it up could pay the mortgage for about 2 more months, so we would need to sell "as is" to avoid foreclosure. And then, where would we live? Who would rent an apartment to 2 unemployed people with a poor credit rating?
After losing a night of sleep, I was able to think of a Plan B, which is to sell the house with the hopes of getting at least $20-30K out of it, and use that to buy an old, used RV. Between M's pension and my unemployment, it would be enough to survive on the road, while building my business. Ok, it wouldn't be the condo on wheels we want; rather it would be a rusted tin box, but at least it would provide shelter and a place to live until we could build ourselves back up. I even found a craft that has good potential to sell well at street fairs.
Today, M got word that the HR manager was livid at the way things were handled and was able to convince the background check company to give him a second chance. They sent him a new application and he is starting the process over, this time making the corrections they found (making sure his job title matched).
So who is to say what path we will end up taking? Will we start our new chapter sooner than planned (no job), or later than planned (job)? Stay posted for the continuation of this saga.....
Wednesday, November 13, 2013
All for the good, right?
This is surely divine intervention!
I got the official notice from my job - it is not going 1/2 time, but rather I am being completely terminated as of the end of the year. Personally, I feel a great sense of relief that I don't have to put up with this very difficult person anymore, and feeling very excited about the prospect of going full steam ahead with building my business.
What is really excellent news is that M has been offered a full time, permanent job which will pay what I was making and what he was making from his freelance work, which means that God is providing for us on the financial front. I can take my business to the next level without having to worry about how to pay bills.
The only real drawback I can see right now is that this job is relatively static, within the State of NJ (with occasional work in NY). It does not lend itself to travel, which means we may need to push our dream of full timing back a few years. But I believe things happen for a reason and when the time is right, we will know. This also gives us a little time to sock more money into savings so we can buy the rig and truck we really want.
Still on track to sell the house and ONE MORE PROJECT has been accomplished - one of the upstairs bedroom is now cleaned out, floor replaced and painted!!
I got the official notice from my job - it is not going 1/2 time, but rather I am being completely terminated as of the end of the year. Personally, I feel a great sense of relief that I don't have to put up with this very difficult person anymore, and feeling very excited about the prospect of going full steam ahead with building my business.
What is really excellent news is that M has been offered a full time, permanent job which will pay what I was making and what he was making from his freelance work, which means that God is providing for us on the financial front. I can take my business to the next level without having to worry about how to pay bills.
The only real drawback I can see right now is that this job is relatively static, within the State of NJ (with occasional work in NY). It does not lend itself to travel, which means we may need to push our dream of full timing back a few years. But I believe things happen for a reason and when the time is right, we will know. This also gives us a little time to sock more money into savings so we can buy the rig and truck we really want.
Still on track to sell the house and ONE MORE PROJECT has been accomplished - one of the upstairs bedroom is now cleaned out, floor replaced and painted!!
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