1. It's been many a-week since I embarked upon a Thursday Thirteen. Might be fun to see if I remember how to do it, in a "dust off the blogging muscle" kind of way. I do remember first line titles; today's is from Ethan Frome, the Edith Wharton classic.
2. The move home has been an unqualified success, on very nearly every front. That's the short story. The longer story would be better served standing as a blog post of its own, but suffice to say, happy is as happy does, and I? We? Are happy.
3. One of the greatest things about the new house, beyond the house itself, is its location. We are downtown, within easy walking distance of everything - bars, restaurants, the river, downtown proper, his office, my office, shopping, the State Capitol, the arts, church - and so we walk. A lot. Sometimes to propel ourselves to a specific destination, but most times just for the pleasure of the act alone.
4. The only downfall of this well-situated address is that there is no nearby local grocery store. Or grocery store of any kind. The logic of it escapes me. Once upon a time, there were five family-owned and operated grocers on the street just around the corner from us, but that was then, and now, even the nearest chain is a drive away.
5. Of course the drive in question is all relative. In Raleigh - and in Richmond, for that matter - we had to
drive everywhere, and distance was everything. We put a lot of miles on our vehicles there, and countless minutes, even hours, were consumed with each day's drive time. Here, I can run by the bank, drop off the dry cleaning, go to the grocery store, swing by my mother-in-law's house, and be home again in thirty minutes. Everything is close by, even those things that are "far away".
6. I'm happy to report that Maggie the cat has made the adjustment quite seamlessly. She has lots of exploring of nooks and crannies to occupy her days, and lots of porch sitting to occupy her evenings. There are at least five other cats roaming our little corner of the world, several of whom believe our porch to be their birthright.
7. Given the daily turf wars she was used to enduring on a daily basis in Raleigh, she's still trying to figure out why these other cats aren't attacking her at every turn, and is suspicious of their friendly natures. She perches in a constant "poised for action" state, and the whole concept of lounging languidly outside while other felines are righttherethisclose is one that's coming to her slowly. She'll get there. If she doesn't scratch all of their passive eyeballs out first.
8. While the house is perfect, it is also a project. A large project. I've taken to carrying around a little notebook, two pages dedicated to each room and one each for the front and back yards, so I can jot down notes, ideas, to-do's, repairs, and wishes. There are no fundamental problems with it, which is a good thing, but there are a great many (as in they add up) items on the various lists, ranging from a simple paint job to reconfiguring of electrical outlets to bring the knob and tube hangers on into the 21st century. Most of the items on the list are purely aesthetic, but will take time (and savings) to scratch through as complete.
9. None of the above bothers me. Us. In fact, I'd go so far as to say all of the above excites us beyond what may
be normal, maybe to the point of giving us a reason to live. Okay, slight exaggeration. But not by much. (BTW, the Calvin & Hobbes picture with this post is a piece of the mural on the 3rd floor (man-child unit's "apartment" area) which was hand painted by the former owner and his sons. How freakin' cool is that?)
10. My husband loves his work, his new job, his new company, and this is just the finest thing. I also love my new position, not least of all because my hours are my own and the firm is as determined as I am to turn it into a full-time gig within three to six months. They have a gaping need, my skills are perfectly suited to fill it, and it hasn't taken long to figure out this is a partnership with enormous possibility.
11. In the meantime, I've got ample time to conduct the business of settling in, playing the Lady of Leisure role to its fullest potential, wherein "leisure" is defined as unpacking, standing in DMV lines, cleaning, meeting up with old friends for lunch, and sipping coffee until the late hours of the morning while plotting my day. In three to six months, I'll be ready to settle into the full-time routine. For now, the arrangement couldn't be more idyllic.
12. I do miss my babies, though. My oldest turns 27 on Monday - let it be known here and now that when she hits 30, I *will* start lying about HER age - and my youngest turns 21 a month from now. She came to visit, boyfriend in tow, and is so happy, and lovely, and wonderfully herself these days. He is finishing up exams in Raleigh, and for the first time will have a full semester of grades - good ones! - to show for his efforts (and our $$). He'll be heading this way in a couple of weeks, and I'm really looking forward to having his "a late bloomer is better than a nipped bud" self around again.
13. And not for nothing, but my honey? He's old and stuff? Turns the big 5-0 in a couple of weeks. I've been wracking my brain for Major Birth Milestone gift ideas, and yesterday? I think I nailed it, in a "mark that one off his Bucket List" sort of way. Tickets to the Indy 500, complete with driver meeting passes and a hard to come by hotel room. He's going to be STUPEFYINGLY THRILLED and I don't quite know how long I'll be able to keep my mouth shut about it. Shhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!
So, how've you been? You sit yourself right down here on the porch and tell me all about it. I'll go pour the lemonade.
