Bad neighbors – real estate bummer

I have a pretty home in a nice neighborhood close enough to town to be convenient but far enough out to be quiet.  The houses are attractive, owner-occupied, with well-kept yards.
Except for two houses.
The two houses on either side of my little piece of heaven.
They are shitheaps.
They are shitheaps owned by absentee landlords who don’t [...]

Sold one more thing

Baby steps, I tell myself, baby steps.  I posted the cart on Craigslist and probably should have priced it higher because eight people responded excitedly in short order. But the cart has  lived outside for fifteen years and my son had scoffed at its saleability. “Who would want that old thing??? You should pay someone [...]

Home is where my heart is

While I love getting away, seeing new sights, meeting new people, I am firmly anchored at home. Home is where my heart is. Home is where I center and rejuvenate myself.
Since my ex and I separated seven years ago, my home has been a 3,000 square foot house on a one-third acre lot framed [...]

Plants and permanence

Permanent: fixed and changeless; lasting; not expected to change in status, condition or place
I spent much of last weekend in the garden, dealing with my plants (wanted and unwanted).  The rhodies, iris and peonies were at their peak, and all looked fabulous.
But now the rhody bushes are covered with dead florets and look like [...]