Changes....
Sep. 11th, 2019 11:38 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
osodecanelaLife happens. It's been a a while since I've posted. So, my husband and I have changed course a bit. Life dealt us lemons and we've decided to make limoncello.
When I retired three years ago we moved to Lake County, with the intention of selling our old property in Sonoma County. Just a couple of days after we moved the last of our things, the county road a 1/4 mile away was taken out by a landslide. Two and a half years later, a permanent repair is still not done. The road is open, so we can get in and out, but GOD forbid there is another super wet winter before they engineer a permanent fix. It will fail again. None of the folks with property past the slide have been able to sell. After nothing but a couple of low ball offers, we have taken the place off the market.
We have two rental units on the property in addition to the main house. We listed them and in short order, both were rented out. We're in the process of reoccupying the house ourselves. The plan is to split our time between the two places. Honestly, my husband is not crazy about living up at the Lake. He's having a hard time with the heat, and we don't have much of a social life.
Early last month he turned to me and said, "make furniture happen". With the assistance of friends and the kindness of strangers, I'm doing this on a shoe string. My goal of having the place look nice, and meet our needs without it looking like early Salvation Army. It started with an oak bedroom set, listed on Craig's List, the results of a lesbian divorce. The woman who listed it had separated 18 months earlier, and her new partner was not comfortable sleeping in the bed she'd shared with her ex. For $300, I've got a gorgeous set.
When I closed my practice, I listed many things to give away on Freecycle. Now I'm watching the site for things. Much of the stuff is trash, but often there are great things that have outlived usefulness for their owners. In the past month, I've furnished the sitting room with an attractive sectional couch, a large oak coffee table, a mission style mahogany end table, mission style arm chair, and a wing chair with ottoman; Freecycle has also yielded several room sized rugs, a full sized china hutch and set of Mikasa dishes (service for 20!).
I'm sorting thru things here at the Lake, figuring out what remains here, and what goes back to the old place. Some things are easy; anything I have two is an obvious choice. I'd listed extra knives and a knife block, as well a bunch of kitchen things that were extra, on eBay and they hadn't sold, and fortunately, I just hadn't gotten around to taking them to Goodwill. I had friends over for dinner at the River house a few weeks back. Seeing my kitchen only partially equipped prompted several offers of kitchen ware they didn't need. Glasses, a set of enameled cast iron, a much needed wok and a food processor all materialized the next time they came for dinner.
I've been out in the barn and up in the attic here at the lake. Seating for the dining area at the river showed itself. There was still an oak table there, and while I didn't have a set of 6 chairs here, I did have two sets of three, and all are oak and the color of the table. Not perfect, but it works without looking bad. I had to do a tune up on five of the six; legs needed re-gluing, screws tightening, and wood needed polishing.
Artwork has been reclaimed from the attic and that's been my most recent task. I've had to seriously clean things up. The environment they were kept in was less than ideal. A few are no longer salvageable, but the majority will be reclaimed. Fortunately, I've done framing before, so repairing a frame, opening and resealing, even cutting new matting doesn’t phase me. I will have a half dozen lithographs ready Friday to drive over to the old place.
The hour grows late and my pillow is calling. More tomorrow or Friday.
When I retired three years ago we moved to Lake County, with the intention of selling our old property in Sonoma County. Just a couple of days after we moved the last of our things, the county road a 1/4 mile away was taken out by a landslide. Two and a half years later, a permanent repair is still not done. The road is open, so we can get in and out, but GOD forbid there is another super wet winter before they engineer a permanent fix. It will fail again. None of the folks with property past the slide have been able to sell. After nothing but a couple of low ball offers, we have taken the place off the market.
We have two rental units on the property in addition to the main house. We listed them and in short order, both were rented out. We're in the process of reoccupying the house ourselves. The plan is to split our time between the two places. Honestly, my husband is not crazy about living up at the Lake. He's having a hard time with the heat, and we don't have much of a social life.
Early last month he turned to me and said, "make furniture happen". With the assistance of friends and the kindness of strangers, I'm doing this on a shoe string. My goal of having the place look nice, and meet our needs without it looking like early Salvation Army. It started with an oak bedroom set, listed on Craig's List, the results of a lesbian divorce. The woman who listed it had separated 18 months earlier, and her new partner was not comfortable sleeping in the bed she'd shared with her ex. For $300, I've got a gorgeous set.
When I closed my practice, I listed many things to give away on Freecycle. Now I'm watching the site for things. Much of the stuff is trash, but often there are great things that have outlived usefulness for their owners. In the past month, I've furnished the sitting room with an attractive sectional couch, a large oak coffee table, a mission style mahogany end table, mission style arm chair, and a wing chair with ottoman; Freecycle has also yielded several room sized rugs, a full sized china hutch and set of Mikasa dishes (service for 20!).
I'm sorting thru things here at the Lake, figuring out what remains here, and what goes back to the old place. Some things are easy; anything I have two is an obvious choice. I'd listed extra knives and a knife block, as well a bunch of kitchen things that were extra, on eBay and they hadn't sold, and fortunately, I just hadn't gotten around to taking them to Goodwill. I had friends over for dinner at the River house a few weeks back. Seeing my kitchen only partially equipped prompted several offers of kitchen ware they didn't need. Glasses, a set of enameled cast iron, a much needed wok and a food processor all materialized the next time they came for dinner.
I've been out in the barn and up in the attic here at the lake. Seating for the dining area at the river showed itself. There was still an oak table there, and while I didn't have a set of 6 chairs here, I did have two sets of three, and all are oak and the color of the table. Not perfect, but it works without looking bad. I had to do a tune up on five of the six; legs needed re-gluing, screws tightening, and wood needed polishing.
Artwork has been reclaimed from the attic and that's been my most recent task. I've had to seriously clean things up. The environment they were kept in was less than ideal. A few are no longer salvageable, but the majority will be reclaimed. Fortunately, I've done framing before, so repairing a frame, opening and resealing, even cutting new matting doesn’t phase me. I will have a half dozen lithographs ready Friday to drive over to the old place.
The hour grows late and my pillow is calling. More tomorrow or Friday.
