Sale Pending

[Ernest]

Adam,

Sorry to hear it. I haven't been in that kind of a spot, but I have friends who have walked away from their homes when the local economy and job market went bad. It's not local now; we have a national (or maybe global) problem, and now more of my friends are losing their investments and looking at some grim housing prospects.

One of our sons and his wife bought a house that was forclosed on a couple of years ago. They got a good deal on the house, but that didn't do anything for the people that had to move out.

[adam]

It is too bad indeed but we have our health and our jobs and it is actually a relief to get on with the process.

Good luck in your situation Ernest.

[Ernest]

I suppose I'll jinx the deal by writing about it, but our "buyers" came back and after negotiations we have a new agreement to close at the end of the July. This time I wanted to know if they were qualified buyers, and I insisted on and got a large non-refundable earnest money deposit, payable to me if they cancel the closing again.

We're looking forward to moving now. We're packing our stuff and getting back in touch with our labor force. It's high summer and the fishing is falling off, but at least I had the best of the season here in the old place.

I'll miss part of living in the woods. On Sunday a bear came into the back yard. The dog was barking from inside the house, and I was rapping on the window, but he wasn't moving along. When he turned to walk down toward the barn (horse feed, horse cookies, etc.), I went out with a plastic broom and chased him into the woods. Last seen he was galloping northwest toward the DNR land. There will be much different wildlife where we're going. We''ll be lucky to see one bear a year down there.

[Ernest]

After lots of drama and crazy plot twists, it looks like we will be closing on these real estate transactions next week. After all this hassle, my next move after this one will be into senior citizen assisted living. I hope that's at least a few years into the future.

I'll be a lot further from Catscratch Creek now, but there are other small trout streams in the new neighborhood.

I'll be without the use of a computer and an Internet connection for about a week, and I'll be looking forward to catching up with all your posts on all the threads when I'm back online.

[adam]

The sign is up outside our home. The business cards from the agents get placed on the counter. The mortgage company now sends acceptance to the multiple applications for assistance that they ignored months ago. They offer to extend our mortgage for several years at a lower rate. It is a classic case of too little too late.

So we count down until we move. The same money that we pay now for a mortgage on a house that is worth less than a third of the purchase price will go to renting a beautiful home in a good neighborhood. We won't be struggling to fix a old air conditioning unit or the dry rot on the trim. My home is where my wife and children are and now we will be in a much better place.

I know I will be remembering this time in my life, my kids will be too.

I'm not fixing the blame, I'm fixing the problem.

I pray that I will remember these lessons and remain humble.

Ernest, you sound like you are in a good place, I wish you all the best things in the world.

[Chef]

In reading all of your posts it seems there is much light to be thankful for even in dark times. You all will win the game as you are seeing what life truly is. I have been fortunate thus far (knock on wood) but realize that any day I could be without a job or potentially witness my house slip away. Humility keeps me balanced.

HSA insurance is terrible in fact health insurance all together is in bad shape which could easily cripple anyone who gets sick coupled with being without a job.

I just had a cook die last week (found in his apartment by his sister) and am not sure how he went but his daily mood was very low, fighting to get his children through a divorce, no hours at work, behind in payments and seemingly his world in a downward spiral.

We need to be surrounded by light, goodness and a positive spiritual walk towards a direction that will define our being. We are all being tested, some more than others but you won't be tested more than you can take...trust me. Most of what we learn in life we have seen through the rear view mirror. What we learn from our past can direct our future and set us up for success in areas that perhaps we never looked at while we were in our comfort zone.

Each one of you will come out of this with cache and will be in the best shape that you have ever been. It won't happen tomorrow but this pain shall pass it's just around the corner at the next pool.

It's not the mountains ahead that will slow you down it's the pebbles in your shoes...

Peace, Love & Strength to all of you :sunny:

[adam]

Works for me Chef, we will be ok. We both work hard and have our health, the boys are strong and it will get better because we are making good choices.

[Ernest]

“Sale pending” has become “sale accomplished.” We sold the old house, bought the new one, and moved yesterday.

The last four days has been a series of minor to mid-level disasters. We’ve gotten through with help from friends and strangers.

My wife and I are running on short sleep as we’ve packed everything and carried some of our things ourselves to the new place. With all the work and low rations, I’ve lost eight pounds in three days. I’ll find them again, though.

Late yesterday we were both dizzy from lack of sleep, but the closings were done, and we had to move the horses. It was hot and humid, and the horses knew a storm was coming. That damn red horse would not go near the trailer. It took us an hour and a half to get him in. By then I’d been stepped on twice, pinned against the wall, and head-butted. After this, I might move kittens, but not 1300 pound horses. With both horses in the trailer, I started off slowly, with the truck loaded with steel fence posts, tools, and horse bedding, and the front of the trailer overloaded with horse tack and the last of our household belongings. We had more than a ton of horse in back. Did I mention that the trailer brakes had quit working?

Twenty miles into the trip we met the storm. We’re not supposed to have hurricanes here. The rain came in sheets. Lightning sparked across the sky and the thunder boomed over the road. The wind blew. Trees fell onto the road. I couldn’t see a thing, which was good, because if I’d seen the downed trees I might have been discouraged. I hoped the horses were still standing. I drove on slowly. I talked to the truck. “Nice truck. Good truck. You can do it,” I said. The truck whined and growled.

The wind and lightning lessened as we approached the new place. Home at last. The storm had blacked out the electricity. It was near nightfall. I had to go out in the rain and put up a temporary fence for a paddock.

Later, shirtless and shoeless, I was moving some things out of one of the cars when a big pickup came up the driveway. It was the neighbor from across the road, egg producer, sheep farmer, cheese maker. He had two grandkids in the cab. Neighbor. I told him I wasn’t dressed to receive company. He said he wasn’t dressed to be calling. At least he had a shirt on. He asked if we had flashlights, and I told him I’d found some. He told us to stop over when we were a little more settled. The coffee pot is on at 5:30 am, and breakfast is served at 8:30. He said if we didn’t like coffee, he had beer. The grandkids liked our dog. My wife said we’d be in touch in the future to ask if he knew who we could hire to mow our overgrown pastures. He asked if we grew up in the country, and when we said yes, he told me to come over and get his tractor and brush hog.

Later I was too tired to find our sheets and make the bed by fading flashlight beam, so I found a sleeping bag and curled up on the floor. My wife pushed some clothing off the bed and spread a sleeping bag on the mattress.

I woke up in the dark to the sound of the air conditioner working. I went into the kitchen to move some food from the coolers to the refrigerator. I ate a sandwich, and went back to sleep.

This morning it was warm but drier. The horses were still alive. We made it.

Last night I forgot to ask the sheep herder about that little brook trout stream that runs through the back side of his property. I’ll have to check in soon and ask for a beer with breakfast.

[Chef]

Ernest, if I ever meet you I hope to be in a small local tavern in your village. I'm certain the conversations would last a life time scented with memory driven adventures.

Your "sale pending" has already risen in value...

[compagnito]

Things are similar in England. I know you guys don't really do "irony", but over here if you walk around the City (like your Wall Street)
the restaurants, bars and pubs are all packed with cheery diners stuffing their faces, their sexy secretaries in tow.

Meanwhile ordinary folk, the hospitals, libraries, disabled folk, the meek, ernest and poor are getting the crap kicked out of them every which way.