Hello dear people,
House drama is moving right along. The inspectors have compiled a 20 page expose on what a dump I'm living in. Huzzah! The buyers, however, are only worried about the potential hazards to life and limb. Which is good, because I was initially, trying to sell the house 'as is'. Here's the deal, I don't want to pass on my bad juju to the next family. Seems like bad karma.
They requested that the 2 gas leaks be fixed. Yes. Not zero, not one but, TWO gas leaks! They also requested that the rusted out furnace be replaced. Rusted out furnace with 2 gas leaks, you say?! How about moving the water heater to safer location that has proper ventilation? Oh, and could you please get the double lugging out of the circuit breaker so that it meets code? So, basically, the universe is telling me that if I hadn't gotten the house inspected, I very well could have blown up this winter. Side note, Melissa took my old dryer to get it fixed and to use at her apartment. Apparently, that too, was a fire hazard waiting to happen. She has decided not to test fate and buy something else.
So, we set up a time for the furnace guy to come make things less scary here. He shows up on Tuesday, gets the furnace in but has to disconnect the a/c because they're no longer compatible. I don't know why, I don't make the rules... So my a/c needs a new doo hickey but the guy has been given the wrong one by his distributor. No a/c Tuesday night. The guy tries to tell me he's having a bad year. Buddy, you got nothing I can't top... Okay, no problem, I can handle a night with fans. We'll be fine. Wednesday arrives and he goes to get correct doo hickey, nope they don't have it. Try, St Louis office. Nope, fresh out of proper doo hickeys. We'll have to overnight from IN. They offer to set us up in a hotel for the night. The house is really gross, record highs & ungodly humidity is happening. He doesn't even want to be in my house at this point and he's a manly man that works in the heat. Alas, the big storm hits and nothing makes it out of IN that night. So, we're in the hotel again on Thursday. Friday rolls around, doo hickey arrives and dude gets to work. When I get home on Friday, all is working. He's agreeing with me that, yeah, this place is haunted and I should high tail it out of here as fast as I can. Every time he fixed something, the thing it was connected to wouldn't work. We can thank my beloved for the 'creative wiring'. Rich knew just enough to be dangerous. The dude had to replace the furnace, re-wire the house humidifier, re-wire the thermostat & replace it. Fix the a/c. Move the hot water heater and drain it 3 times because every time he got it set up, a leak would spring somewhere along the line. He fixed the gas leaks, disconnected the gas, furnace and a/c to the garage. He could not get out of here fast enough. The poor man wanted nothing more to do with Mantz Manor for as long as he lives. He did show some interest in Rich's slot machine, so I gifted it to him. Hopefully, he feels less abused now. All this before we're even told if my house appraised for asking price.
I can't lie, I was feeling VERY put out last week. I had much rage and nothing to renovate. I couldn't cook or bake or do any of the things that I love because I basically couldn't be home. The humidity in the house had gotten so bad, we were having trouble opening and closing the doors. And, my house plants started dropping leaves like crazy. No bueno... Now, I know the house is 150 years old and we've lived BIG lives here for 19 years. Rich was doing the best he could with what he had. But, damn, bro! WTF?! I'm looking forward to the move being behind me. I think once that happens, I can just miss my husband rather than be so pissed at him all the time. I feel deep down, that's going to be essential to my healing.
Through this, I have realized just how important connections are. I went to a TAS (The Applique Society) meeting this month. I went to our Crazy Quilt Group meeting. And, I'm planning on going to my first quilt guild meeting tomorrow. Look at me, being all social!
Oh My Gosh, I almost forgot to tell you! So, I've kept in touch with a friend from bible camp over the years on FB. Her name is Jennifer and we met at bible camp in Junior High and y'all know how old I am. Lost touch for many years but reconnected when FB became a thing. She reached out to me several weeks ago that she'd be driving through STL and did I want to get together? Well, of course I did! In fact, I insist that she stay with me (this is important to the story). Then, the inspectors came. I got distracted and over whelmed. I'm downsizing, so I have to get rid of half my stuff. Wake up one Saturday and put a bunch of furniture on FB market place. The only thing that sells right away is my extra bed. I sell it on a Saturday morning. Lay down for bed that night and start thinking about how excited I was to see Jennifer that coming Monday. OMG! I just sold the bed that I insisted she sleep in! I am such a moron!! Luckily, Hunter had a blow up mattress I could borrow. Jennifer came to visit. She was lovely and forgiving and was able to laugh off the whole thing. I've decided she must be in my soul tribe because we basically just started back up where we left off more than 35 years ago. Moral to my story. Friends are amazing and miraculous and I live a blessed life to have so many fabulous people to hang out with.
Speaking of fabulous people! My step-niece just moved to STL!! I'm so excited! We were supposed to meet for dinner last week but the storms and everything happened. So, we're rescheduled for this week!! Woo hoo! Can't wait! See?! Lots to look forward to!
Love you, friend! See you soon.
