(no subject)
The house project is done and has been so for a while now. I *think* it's working, the general idea was to get the place clean enough that maintaining took less time - since it wasn't in 'move in' condition when we arrived a lot of things are in what one would be generous calling 'serviceable' condition. Think tiles broken off of floors, unsealed wood flooring that really needs buffing and refinishing, cracks and dings in the plaster, 50 year old stains, etc. Everything has been scrubbed and bleached within an inch of its life, and we got rid of truckloads of stuff we didn't need/want anymore. It does take a lot less time to maintain now, but I', frequently nagged by the sense that I'm not doing something, or not doing it right, and that at some point it's all going to fall apart and I'll be back where I started. I don't know yet if that's just me being odd, or if I am really missing something. I suppose I'll find out.
Thanks to the book club and some new friends I have a social life beyond my wildest imagination. There's a lot of "vintage' events here in the city, and I've begun attending quite a few of them, like the Dances of Vice Swan Lake Masquerade tomorrow, and the Midnight Follies the following Friday, and the Steampunk World's Fair the Saturday after. Whew! While the cost of these things does add up we've decided that we like them so much (lots of live music!)that we've adjusted other things around, like eating out less often, so we can do all these things while still keeping up with our savings goals.
Two weeks ago we were driving to the farmers' market on a grey Saturday morning. Crossing the bridge we get a huge view of Manhattan, and it's not unusual for the tops of the buildings to be lost in the cloud cover. That day you couldn't see anything at all, the whole of the island from the tips of the buildings down was shrouded in a pale grey mist, giving everything an eerie, unexpected quality, as if what we were about to enter might not be quite what we'd expect. It was a beautiful moment.
Thanks to the book club and some new friends I have a social life beyond my wildest imagination. There's a lot of "vintage' events here in the city, and I've begun attending quite a few of them, like the Dances of Vice Swan Lake Masquerade tomorrow, and the Midnight Follies the following Friday, and the Steampunk World's Fair the Saturday after. Whew! While the cost of these things does add up we've decided that we like them so much (lots of live music!)that we've adjusted other things around, like eating out less often, so we can do all these things while still keeping up with our savings goals.
Two weeks ago we were driving to the farmers' market on a grey Saturday morning. Crossing the bridge we get a huge view of Manhattan, and it's not unusual for the tops of the buildings to be lost in the cloud cover. That day you couldn't see anything at all, the whole of the island from the tips of the buildings down was shrouded in a pale grey mist, giving everything an eerie, unexpected quality, as if what we were about to enter might not be quite what we'd expect. It was a beautiful moment.