Sorry

I'm not on vacation.

It's just that we now own a house.

And home ownership is a little like caring for a really really big baby. Yeah. Only it isn't really. But it is sucking up all of my time and who would have guessed? my money too.

Only my husband would be quick to point out that it's actually HIS money that I'm flinging wildly at repair people.

Did you KNOW that you have to change the locks when you buy a house?

I had no idea. I must have skipped that chapter in House Buying for Dummies.

Guess what I realized after we got the keys? If you sit still in any of the rooms you can see that my "just painted" house, actually has only one coat of paint on the walls. And no primer.

Perhaps I'm being too picky.

Well, I'm not messing with the paint issue, because I figure I'll want different colors soon anyway. I usually like to paint when I have a fever or something, so we'll just wait til then.

I've met lots of men in the last few days, and I have to say that most of them have been really nice. And not in that patronizing "Now-look-here-little-lady-don't-trouble-yourself-with-the-details-I'll-take-care-of-it-for-you, kind of way.

Anyone who knows me knows that I live for the details. Every freaking stinking little detail.
I have a new found knowledge of furnaces, waterheaters, chimneys, pick-proof locks, and replacement door knobs.

It's the bigger picture that I sometimes have a hard time grasping.

You know, that part about how you have to finish packing before you can move.

a vague apology

It's been many days and I really feel the need to write something, but also to explain that I HAVE written a few things, they just didn't make it to press-time, so to speak.

It's not that I haven't been thinking of you, it's just... well, those other people in the house... they're sooo

pesky.

Like that kid, always wanting to eat, and then needing to be reminded to bathe and stuff. And then he keeps wanting to play Monopoly - which is NOT a short game.

And since I'm kvetching, I might as well tell you that the house we have been working on buying is not going to happen. THAT took a lot of mental energy. And those of you who know me will attest to the fact that I don't have much mental energy to spare these days.

I have a few things rolling around in my head that I will post in the next few days, but for now, all I've got to offer is these few words.

bedtime

I think I need to go to sleep.

Tomorrow will certainly be a long and difficult work day and I said that I'd go in early, which means I have to leave the house before 7am.

It's hard sometimes, working on Saturday, knowing that my husband and Daniel are at home hanging out. playing Mario on the Wii, eating waffles.

But I think its good too, for them to have their time together, when the grown-up relationship doesn't interfere with Daniel and his dad.

But still working 9 or so hours on a Saturday can wear a person down.

On the other hand, NaBloPoMo is over, so I'll be taking a break this weekend as we attempt to make homemade pasta for the first time ever (well, ok, my husband has done it before, but not me)

Here's a photo of warmer days:

If you click on the photo, you can see the larger version of it, which is kind of wild with it's very narrow focal range. And that stray hair or something that just jumps out at you right in the middle of the picture. Niiice.

Fall back

It's nablopomo so I'm going to write about every inane thing that pops into my head...and write about it as I'm thinking it.

Probably not a good idea I realize, since I woke up ten minutes ago, and still swimming through a Benedryl-induced swamp of sleep.

Still, since I'm at the computer, and I'll be off to work in a few scant minutes...

Tomorrow is the new revised end of daylight saving time. And like a kid envisioning a snow day, I am positively giddy with the excitement of sleeping for One. More. Hour.

Although I know in my heart of hearts that I won't sleep longer.

Daniel will probably wake up an hour early tomorrow.

And all next week will be hell as he adjusts to the time change.

Is it true for all kids?

I only have the one... the one with sensory issues. And for us, any change in schedule causes major havoc.

Oh sure he may willingly go to bed at the later time, but then he'll get up at 5 instead of 6.

For 2 weeks or so.

Good times.

But still....one more hour....

of sleep.

Love is...

digging through the vacuum cleaner bag for a small worthless piece of foam shaped like a vehicle that your child likes, BEFORE he discovers that it's gone.

Hmmm...

or maybe that's called FEAR?

More real estate stuff that no one cares about but me

It wasn't that long ago  (less than a year) that I was checking out a house in Montclair with a realtor. It was in the same price range I'm looking at now, only then all I got to look at was a house barely bigger than what we have with a basement floor so water-damaged that it was bouncy. Back then the realtor barely gave me the time of day and spent the whole time on the phone with another client, leaving me to look over the house by myself.

I didn't really mind, but it was clear that my business didn't matter to her.

I only mention it because now I'm getting all kinds of call backs from all kinds of realtors looking for my business. Clearly the bubble is way busted.

It's nice to be taken seriously though.

The bubble has burst and my head might be next

I had so many things to talk about, but they have been pushed out of my brain by real estate jargon and mortgage amortization charts neighborhood re-assessment tax lists and the realization that although the realtor and the mortgage broker keep saying we can afford to pay more, I just don't think that they understand that we like to EAT and have those minor comforts of life like heat and cable tv and new Wii games occasionally.

And also, I don't think it's right that closing costs can be more than a down payment. But maybe I'm just old fashioned.

And even though I sincerely like all the people who are guiding my naive ass through this ridiculous home-buying process, which we have only just barely begun to do, I know that I can't actually trust any of them, because every last one of them is making a commission off of me.

So yeah, the inside of my head is like that bowl of oatmeal that we left on the table since breakfast and now only jackhammers and really good interest rates can get through.

But maybe tomorrow I will finally have the results of our Summer of Testing and I can tell you what a person who is not paid to find problems, but rather potential, says about my son.

Oh and I have a cat who just started taking Prozac. It's too soon to tell if it's improving her outlook on life.