If it feels like we just moved, it’s because we did. And yet we’re preparing to do it one more time. Moving is exhausting and expensive. And here we are – closing on our new home in 15 days. Andrea got the opportunity, with her current company, to work out of Richmond and we leapt on that opportunity. While I was packing, I came across some of our leftover holiday cards from Christmas 2020 and it struck me that it’s been a long time since I haven’t spent 2 consecutive Christmas’s in the same place. When I found leftover “we have moved cards”, I thought, “Well. Guess I’m going to need more of these…. Same topic, different address.” Then I thought, “Are people going to think I’m a total flake?” And then I had three other thoughts….
1) I’m the kind of person who was gifted this awesome candle by Mairead. What do I care what people think?!
3) The hip real estate agent I follow on Instagram moves ALL.THE.TIME.
The hip real estate agent is younger than I am. And – she’s very thin. One day, after packing and getting our home ready for listing, I groaned, “If I’d known we were going to move after the pandemic, I’d have stayed in shape. Trained for it in the way that some people train for marathons.” A sentiment that reminds me of this meme.
As for the home we purchased in Forest, Virginia, almost 15-months ago, we readied it for sale this past week. We had the movers pack most of it up on Monday. On Tuesday, the cleaners came and deep cleaned the house. At around 10 P that evening, our realtor texted and asked if her husband (also a realtor) could bring an out-of-town client by the following day. We agreed and they arrived just as the carpet cleaners were wrapping up. They put an offer in for full price and waived inspection before the house hit the MLS, which we accepted. On Friday, we had a hiccup. The buyer had apparently wanted to see another home that had hit the market and their agent had to explain that this isn’t how this works and the implications of breach of contract. The implications, which could potentially be very costly, were enough to get things back on track. By the time we’d heard that things were seemingly salvaged, we were almost back to the Forest home from the Richmond area. We had headed to Forest to take our own photos of the house in the event the house needed to be listed as active on the MLS. We’d pulled our pets out of there last Sunday and set up house, temporarily, in Midlothian, Virginia. Midlothian is approximately 30 minutes west of Richmond and we’re in a fully furnished AirBnb. We booked this thinking that it would be easy to list, and then show, our home to prospective buyers if the pets were out of it. Us too – but mainly Bogart who has gotten out of the house, detected and undetected, on more than one occasion. On Mother’s Day, we found him under a bush in front of our house and just this past week, he appeared on the deck of the rental house, peering in long after the dogs had come back. The dogs peered back out at him, “Hey. What are you doing out there?” Good question. This isn't a flattering picture of Bogart but hey, if you're gonna act ugly, ugly is what you get, bro.
Here we are – on the edge of the big city. There are things to do and people are re-emerging from lock down with enthusiasm and uncertainty regarding masks - wear them? Don't wear them? Business owners seem unsure as to what the right answer is either. I read of a California business owner who is fining diners $5 if they wear masks. He's donating the money to charity but he still sounds like an asshole in my book.
There is always something to do in Richmond - which is a refreshing change from both Forest and from this goddamn pandemic. I'm reminded of the Grand Canyon tour guide we met. Adventure!
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