Want a good chuckle? Stayed tuned to the end of this post for my "September Silly."
Sean loves football. Me, not so much. Ever since Trevor's leg injury at the outset of his 8th grade season, my heart shudders with fear for safety in this violent sport. Still, it is fun to watch them win! Here are photos of Sean (#55) exuberantly rejoicing in touchdowns by his team:
They were thrilled to win against long-time rival, Danville, the first shut-out (21-0) against this team in twenty years. Here they are with the coveted winning helmet trophy:
Here's a better shot of the twenty-year rivalry helmet trophy:
And a shot of Sean with some football buddies:
As more and more people move onto property near us, our once isolated and private area is changed. We've lived here, on my husband's family land, for 17 years. For the first whole decade, I hated living here. In the past, I've considered myself a city girl. I loved walking the streets of Chicago, popping into all the antiquarian bookshops. I loved having access to culture, variety, and people. This rural town did not welcome or embrace me. I was stuck at home with two infants and no connections to support or assist.
Indeed, I ached to move back to Illinois, where I was fully plugged in, had an identity tied to education, and access to the city of Chicago without being right in the city. Yet, in the past 17 years, I've morphed into a different person. I would no longer consider myself a city girl. If and when we move from this location (possible as soon as our youngest graduates from high school), I'm more likely to desire another isolated location. The pandemic didn't help things. Moreover, the future looks threatening.
Of course, Facebook is onto my idle dreams of new housing. My feed is flooded with videos of tiny homes (while I fantasize about living tiny, I'm all too aware that my hoarding tendencies make such dreams futile). I also receive alerts about adorable, old houses. Now that we've faced multiple problems in this old house (air-conditioning/heating system had to be completely replaced in June at great personal cost and well pump replaced in mid-September), I'm trying to swipe past those old house advertisement.
This one, however, caught my eye and I'm smitten. It says it has been well-maintained. The external and internal photos are appealing. But, the real draw? This house is only an hour and a half away from my favorite cousin, Karin. I'm pretty sure my husband won't go for it. It is in Pennsylvania and he has his heart set on moving to an isolated, artsy community in Southern Indiana. But, I can dream, can't I?
I love this little alcove area between the garage and house. Can't you just imagine hours of outdoor reading?
Some setbacks to this idea: 1) We don't have that kind of money at this point. 2) We are not in the market yet. 3) Talk about isolated - this is like our current rural town on steroids - not even a Walmart nearby - wow! 4) WINTER - snow, ugh! 5) SUMMER - Did it really say window a/c? Okay, dream bubble effectively burst! Sorry, Karin.
If I could sell 5 million copies of my book (HA), we could move into this over-the-top house in nearby Carmel, Indiana:
The twenty-some photos at that link are awe-inspiring, but no, no, no - the Meadowview estate is not my dream house! Future grandkids might love the indoor wooden slide, the elaborate movie theater room, the Titanic-esque staircase in the billiards room, and the inground pool.
I would loathe the responsibility of decorating, outfitting, and especially CLEANING 14 bathrooms (yikes) and over 20 thousand square feet of house! Nice to visit; not so nice to maintain.
Finally, I leave you with a hilarious story. John and I went out for lunch. Where he parked in the lot, we were surrounded by various work trucks. After exiting the restaurant, we approached our car. John noticed something odd dangling from below the car, near the back tire. We both squatted down to inspect this damage we had never noticed before on my car. Suddenly, the passenger window rolled down and the driver in the front seat looked at us dubiously. Doh! It wasn't our car! Our black car was parked just beyond her black car (almost identical, but for the unrecognized damage - ha!). Thankfully, she was good-natured about it. I couldn't stop laughing about it for the rest of the day. When I texted my friend, Beth, about it, she said, "Double win! A good hearted laugh and the good news that the repair belongs to someone else. 😂" She also sent this hilarious gif that captured my response:
3 comments:
Congratulations TriWest on your victory against Danville! We've been watching 6th grade footballs games for our grandson and going also watching the 4th-6-th grade cheerleading team. For us, we're cheering on grandchildren even though I vividly remember watching our boys play in high school. The years go by so fast!
It's a beautiful dream. I could see you making it a nice home. I know you would love to be near Karin. You never know - it may be something John would entertain. You've given up quite a few years to live in Indiana, after all. =)
I've written down some of your book suggestions. I'll let you know when I read them. Love reading your blog when I think of it or get a chance.
You sell yourself short too often, though. You are more amazing that you realize.
Gretchen - Yes, the years go by fast - cannot believe we only have a year and a half or so left with our youngest. He intends to go to Purdue.
Dawn - I was drawn to the house before realizing it was close to Karin, but we've now altered our goals. We're thinking it would be better to downsize to a smaller condo or apartment which provides maintenance from a landlord rather than facing all the complications and repairs (like we're experiencing now) of owning a house. Thanks for visiting my blog. Hope you found some appealing book recommendations.
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