No Average Mom

The ding dongs next door disappeared. This has been a blessing in our lives that I can’t describe. I can only hope they bought some Branson property or something else that far away. The reality is they are probably hiding from the police or something more along those lines. For tens months they made our lives miserable with parties, drugs, and fights in the street. Where I live is not the type of neighborhood that is used to this type of lifestyle. My prayer is that they never come back. The reality is that at some point I am sure they will because I haven’t read about them in newspaper.

I never go to the doctor but the time has come when I can’t put it off anymore. There is almost no part of my body that will go unchecked in the next few months. I kind of figure that if I am going to have to meet my deductible I might as well take advantage of the coverage I have. Tomorrow I will finally see someone about the pain that has been plaguing my neck, shoulder, and back. It gets to the point where I can’t sleep or lift my left arm. The last time this happened about 8 years ago the doctor gave me some injections that worked wonders. I am hoping the same thing happens this time. The only thing more appealing to me right now would be if he said that I needed to pack my Rimowa bags and head off for a nice long vacation in the sun. Since I don’t think that is going to happen I guess I will just daydream about a nice cortisone injection instead.

The thought occurred to me that if our house doesn’t sell that we could always rent it out. This isn’t really something we want to do but something we would consider if need be. What I wonder is if this would require any kind of special home owner insurance? It seems like there must be something you can do to protect your home when you aren’t there to do so. I imagine it all depends on the type of financing you have whether renting is even possible. These are all things I really need to look into just to be sure.

There is something really liberating about purging your home of stuff you have been hanging onto for years. In 17 years of marriage we have accumulated a lot of stuff. So many things we have kept thinking that someday we will need it. The problem is that we never really get around to using the majority of these things. Finally, I have reached the point in life where I am no longer needing a bunch of stuff to make me feel safe. Therefore the Salvation Army has been our new best friend. Rather than wait for summer to come so we can have a garage sale we decided to donate everything. When I say everything I really mean it. We have hauled off not only clothes but a couple of van racks and many pieces of computer equipment. It feels really good so see spacious and uncluttered areas in our home.

Have you ever played “In A Pickle”? One thing this game asks you to do is announce for each play you make “there are thoughts in the head”. Today my thoughts are straying towards the topic of mortgage lenders. It occurred to me that we haven’t even considered whether we will have problems qualifying for a new mortgage should our home sell. The news is saying it will be much harder for people to get credit in this economy. I would hate to sell my home only to find out that for some reason we don’t qualify for a new mortgage! What do you think?

There are moments when I cannot believe that I am once again finding myself packing up to move. The last time I did this was four years ago. At that time as I slid a box across a truck bed liner I swore it would be the last time. Life has a way of showing you that you just can’t ever say “never”. The strange thing is that this time I really have no clear idea about what the future holds. Normally I plan everything the most finite detail and this time I am just sort of winging it and trusting that someone smarter than me is in charge.

Every day the news keeps talking about how bad the housing market it. They never really specify if it is everywhere or just in big cities. I would love to know how things here in Western New York compares with Winter Park real estate. Our newspaper recently reported that the market was still solid here but things change so quickly it really is hard to tell. Since we are getting ready to put our house on the market my mind if filled with thoughts about what we will do if our home doesn’t sell.

One of those miraculous times in childhood is creeping up on us. It is becoming very clear that my almost two year old son will without a doubt test the limits in every way possible. This includes stretching the limits of the “terrible twos” as much as possible. For the last three days he has had a tantrum over something. These are brief little bouts of pouting but full out screaming for 1 hour or more. Finally, when nothing else would soothe him I popped in a movie and sat down next to him and waited it out. Thank goodness for closed captioning! It was definitely made for mommies of two year olds.