Month: October 2022

October 2022 Update

I’m doing a quick check-in so you all know I’m alive and well, but incredibly busy.

The house was listed 10 days ago, and in that time, the boom real estate market disappeared and slowed to a crawl. So we lowered the price, and that seems to have generated more interest and some more scheduled showings.

I am still culling and organizing at top speed—and making real progress too.  Days are super busy, so I’ve had little time for the blog.  The rainy day coming tomorrow will be good for sorting out my clothes and culling—one of the last tasks of the moment.  I can’t do much more until I have a signed contract, then I can start to take apart the house. I can let Recover take most of the extra furniture that is not going. Maybe I can hang on to the tv for a bit longer, though I do have audio books. The timing of the settlement will dictate what I do in terms of a final clearing out and the scheduling of the actual move. With a firm contract, I can take down quilt wall hangings and start packing the quilts for the move.  Ditto for the whole rest of the quilting/sewing endeavor.  I need to go through everything “sewing” to see if I still need or use all of it.

At this point, though, all of the storage spaces except for the one in my bedroom that holds my out-of-season clothes have been sorted and drastically culled. You can’t imagine how much “stuff” has been sent out into the community. And I’ve had such good help from two friends in particular, Margaret Rauenhorst and Linda McKinney, both of whom have worked tirelessly to help me get ready for a move which includes downsizing. Both have made so many trips to Good Will, the dump, and other places in the last 10 days and have worked to rehome so many items.

I want to note that so many of my friends have offered help, and they have made me feel loved and appreciated—and that they will miss me. I know I will miss each and every one of them.

Perhaps the biggest news is that along the way I realized that I can do this move or I can do Jackpot.  I cannot do both—especially with an injured ankle that is better but still healing.  Glenna at Sweet Pups found me two AWESOME foster women within 15 minutes of me to take Jackpot until she comes on a transport Nov. 8th—unless either of them adopts him, which she would approve as she has had a long relationship with both women.  Or, unless they find a new situation for Jackpot, which Glenna would also trust. Each of these foster women has one of her pups.  Together they run a dog-training school, and they both have the biggest “dog” hearts. It was a joy to meet them.

I turned Jackpot over to them Sunday afternoon.  And can I say that the one who is housing Jackpot had him so enthralled that I don’t think he even knew when I left, though there were good-bye kisses and hugs from me.  He is now living with this big-hearted woman and her 4-year old Sweet Pups male dog, and last night these two fellas played and played until they both fell asleep. The report today was that Jackpot was a perfect gentleman last night, is eating well, and loves playing with his new friend. There is a fenced yard, so he has a lot more freedom to go outside on his own and to run and play while out there.

Ron from Olde City Quilts (New Jersey), my Innova dealer along with his wife Judy, is coming Thursday to take down the longarm. They will store it until I have moved into a home in South Carolina and then Ron will bring it to me there. The Smith Tractor crew (Duane and Leslie Smith) will also be here Thursday morning and will do all the tasks that need to be done this time of year to prep for winter, for snow, and for the snow plow. We still have not had a hard freeze, so it is too early to cut back many of the perennials. That task may have to go by the wayside for this year. Time will tell.

So…

I’ve been thinking that I’ll have to change the descriptive name of my blog from “My Life in Maine” to…what??? The main address is louisaenright.com, so that part can remain.

Moving again is a life adventure, for sure. And I’m so looking forward to spending lots of time with my family in the months and years to come. And to continue with my quilting passion. I have so many quilts I still want to make.

I’ll post again when I have news.

 

Big News

So, clearly I have been “absent without leave.”

The BIG NEWS is that I have decided to move to Charleston to be closer to my family.

When I got Jackpot puppy and was out twice a day walking, etc., I realized how VERY curtailed my life has become.  All the richness I once knew here is just…gone.  And this property’s upkeep needs and the physical labor of it all is now seeming to be more and more difficult to manage.  The takedown of the mailbox and all it entailed to get one again, and the $$$$, just flattened me in what I now recognize is suddenly a way more vulnerable time for me.

I realized that I am alone—and have been alone—for pretty much the last three Covid years.  I go days without talking to anyone, except here online.  My support networks are also diminishing as we all age, and I will be 78 in March.

I don’t see most of my quilting friends or my fellow Lion members on a regular basis any more, and I don’t go to quilt meetings or other meetings as I don’t dare get sick here by myself.  My friends are also afraid they will give me covid, so they are very careful about not coming if they don’t feel well.  The days of Sit and Sews among healthy people are…gone.  For me, anyway.

I love Maine so much—and will miss the cooler weather and the lovely seasons.  But…. I’ve always known I would know when it was time to move. It is now time.  My family is so excited, and I will also say that while I am overwhelmed with all that has to be done, culled, etc., I am also looking forward to starting a new life adventure.  

I will sell here first, then buy in SC.  Older son Mike is “on it” in terms of helping me find a smaller house within 15-20 minutes of my two sons and which is near one of the many big and beautiful parks with trails.  The early looks at properties he’s sending show that that is quite possible to downsize but to have really nice living spaces. One of Tami’s oldest friends (who has ties to Maine) will be my SC realtor.  I can go down to 3 bedrooms, one of which needs to be large enough for the longarm/quilt room.  Maybe that will be something like a big bonus room over a garage that I’ll need in order to be able to plug in my hybrid car.  Many of the new houses we have been looking at have big, open kitchen/dining/living room features on the first floor.  And many are within HOA situations where I suspect communal mowing, etc., is done.

I’ll be able to stay with Mike and Tami until I can move into a new place in SC. And I’ll need to store furniture until I can move into whatever house I buy.  The mover I’m going to use can pick up and store in Portland until I have purchased a house.  There are a lot of moving parts—but my Innova dealer IS going to pack up my long arm, store it, and bring it to me when I’m ready in Charleston.  Whew!!  The longarm is not an item movers can take apart and move.

Family members will come if I need more help, but events are moving fast. In the last week a dear friend here has done major physical work with helping me cull, box, and move out what is not going. And family will help me drive to Charleston when the time comes.

The house was listed today. So…”it” begins in earnest.

And I know a whole new life adventure is beginning for me.