Moving Day - Part 2

     So, it's about 8:25 p.m. now, and I've signed on the dotted line; I've been given the keys and the garage door opener, and Laura and I have taken five loads over in the car. It was really too hot today (105) to do much more. We've waited for the evening to roll around, and we'll only have 97-degree heat to deal with. We are taking all the small boxes, bags, and things that can't close, because we don't trust them not to fly off the long trailer my friend Steve is going to bring over tomorrow morning.

    When I left you last, I was about to go to the bank to get the cashier's check for the closing.  The lender tells you the day before or so just how much you're to bring. He said the title company prefers it to be in a cashier's check, but you can also wire the money. I prefer the check too. I get a stub that way. The stub goes into the little book they make for you with all your hard-copy papers (copies of them), and you can keep the binder in a closet somewhere if you ever need to remember just how many times you can sign your name in one day.

    My realtor showed up 30 minutes late for the walkthrough, so I'm really glad I went to the bank early. It did mean driving 15 miles one way, but I met the bankers at the branch closest to my home. When I lived in the city, the ladies of the branch I went to were really sweet. The same can be said for the new branch, and every one of them wanted to be in my new book. Two out of three said they wanted to be "bad," so bad it is! I aim to please, when at all possible.

    Signing all 5000 forms to move only took about 40 minutes. To get back to the title company, I followed the realtor. I told her I could meet her there because I didn't want to take the highway. She decided to go the way I go, but she was leading, and instead of taking the route I would have taken, she took a shortcut. It ended up being 3 miles of long, winding roads that were 100% dirt and gravel -- no asphalt. To say I need to wash my car would be an understatement. I laughed because my realtor is a girly-girl, not someone you'd think would want to use four-wheel drive unless she was forced to.

    Moving went slowly - but steadily, and it will continue to do so tomorrow as well. We'll take our time, do it right, not overextend ourselves, and with luck and a prayer or two, we'll come out on the other side looking good. The new house is our new adventure. We'll make every day count. I've already met one of the neighbors, and so has Laura. I met a man named Jacob who works as an electrician. Laura met a feral blue-gray male cat that has probably never really interacted with humans - she'll name him and feed him outside.

    There's a Casey's convenience store nearby, so I swung in to pick up two tall cans of Arizona green tea, and decided to treat myself to a fountain drink -- I never do that. I went with something called a mango refresher...are you ready for the sugar count? The 32 oz cup has 124 grams of sugar and 480 calories, but hey, I did load it up with ice, so I'm sure that helps, right? OMG...I can't do that very often, but after the heat, the moving, and the stress of the day—bring it.

    So, I'm at the computer, and I'll have internet at this house through Sunday, so I'll use it. I'll keep my computer here and one monitor. I'll let Steve take the desks, which will mean I'll have to sit on the floor and use a box for a desk, but you know me; I adapt. I'm not picky. If it works, it works. I don't have to be fancy.  I did do something pretty fun today - I changed the address on my bank card, my bank account actually, which includes the card, and I changed the address on my Amazon and Walmart accounts. I use their delivery services.

    Tomorrow, because I ordered things on Amazon today, we have a few items being dropped off. If I had been smart, I would have had them delivered on Monday, but no one ever really accused me of using my brain the way it was designed to be used. I'll have to help Steve load, drop Laura off at the new house to wait on Amazon, and then come back and load up boxes he can't take in his trailer. She can unload at the house and set things up.  We should be done by this time tomorrow.

    We're taking Sunday to clean the old house, make sure all the small things are packed in smaller boxes, and then deal with any leftover trash, because between the loads we took today, someone came by our house and stole our trash can! Who does that? If you need a new can, the city will provide one. If you have three, the city won't pick it up unless you have a special mark by your name in their records. It just doesn't make much sense to steal a trash can!

    Oh well, that's about it. We'll be measuring windows for blinds tomorrow too. We have curtains and rods, but we do want blinds on the windows too. Laura will be exhausted all weekend - she'll rest when she can and keep her friends online laughing while she tells them all about her moving experience this time around. Round two starts at 9:00 a.m., so we're gonna hit the shower, go to bed, and wake up ready to roll.

Photo Credit: Milo's sanctuary.

MOVING DAY - Part 1

     Finally!! It is moving day, closing day, house day!! I'm beside myself with glee.  Glee is an amazing word. I like it. It fully captures what I'm feeling right now. It eliminates fear, anxiety, somberness, worry, and all those other things I was feeling before I was allowed to feel glee. It is finally here; I'm finally going to move. I've been living with boxes and crates in my house for nearly three weeks now, just waiting! It is time to haul them all over to the new house; to Oliver.

    Sometime today, I'll need to update all my internet pages to let everyone know my new address. Of course, when I order again from Walmart or Amazon, I can do it too, but I want to be sure every T is crossed and every I is dotted. (Ironically, you don't dot a capital I, and you still cross a capital T.) It's been such a long and arduous journey; one we really didn't need to be a part of. I sort of feel as if I have been standing in line at one of those rides at Six Flags, and when I tried to step out of line, the crowd pulled me back in, and I have to go on the roughest, highest, steepest, most terrifying roller coaster known to humans. Yes, that is exactly how it felt.

    The ride has peaked! I have taken the last turn, been turned upside down a couple of times, and the damn thing got stuck during one of those rotations! I was hanging onto the bar in front of me with one hand and holding Laura with the other. I couldn't even bow my head to pray properly for fear it would tip the car, but we prayed. We prayed, and we prayed a lot. We asked others to pray, and then, after all that, we prayed again. I think maybe Jesus likes roller coasters, and He must like dragging me with Him when He rides them. He knows it's going to turn out OK, but ding and dang! C'mon!

    So, it's about 9:15 a.m., and I will meet my realtor at Oliver at 11:45 a.m. for the "walk through," which I feel is completely unnecessary, but apparently, it's a realtor thing. Then we drive separately, of course, over to the title company. I'll run by the bank first to pick up my cashier's check for closing. The bank is only half a mile from the title company.  We close at 1:00 p.m., and I get my keys. Meanwhile, back at the ranch, Laura will be in the various rooms of the house, bringing the boxes from each into the living room for easier access.

    We're going to move as many boxes as we can, and the television, and anything we don't want on the back of the long trailer our friend is bringing to move my heavy things. If we can get everything done except the heavy things, that will save him time and let us get more done. He's coming tomorrow, so we have the whole afternoon and evening to get as much as we can into the new house. Since Oliver is only 1.1 miles from my old house, I think we can get a lot done.

    It feels real. It feels as if it is really happening instead of a dream. It feels good, and it feels permanent. I wanted so badly to call this house my permanent house, but it wasn't meant to be. I can't know why, but it wasn't meant to be. It hurt to find out that it wasn't going to be our house. We put a lot into it. We put a lot of hope, dreams, prayers, plans, and money into it, but in the end, it was only a temporary fix. 

    Laura told me yesterday that she was proud of me for going through what we've gone through. I thanked her, but I think emotionally, she was the one who truly suffered the most. She had to give up her horses and, in fact, her heart horse - again. She's had to do that more than once, and no one should have to. She had to pull out and destroy her garden. She had to give her chickens back. I was just paying money and trying to figure out what would happen if it all fell through.

    Jesus!  That's the truth. He is the answer. He is the only answer. In fact, even though He likes to take me for these crazy spins now and again, I still trust Him. I will always trust Him. I don't know what He's got planned, but it's always better than what I wanted in the first place. Let the games begin! Breakfast, then the walkthrough, then the closing, then the move. It's a glorious and wonderful day.  

    Happy Birthday Oliver Ernest Stringfellow! 

    

CLEAR TO CLOSE!!! (Best Words)

     "Clear to Close" can be some of the best and most anticipated words you'll ever hear. I'm over here dying, just waiting for the lender to get with me and tell me that I'm good to go. It's been so hard, so very, very hard just waiting for him to say it's a go. Let me start by saying it shouldn't have been this difficult, and I wouldn't wish what I've been through on my enemy's best friend. Do you hear what I'm saying? It was, in fact, the worst damn experience, and yet, just like having a baby, you nearly forget the agony once you've pushed through.

    Well, just like having a baby, I do have a name for my new house. I've decided to name him Oliver. I'm letting Laura give him a middle name - she chose Ernest. (Not earnest as in money we had to put down, but after my grandpa.)  Oliver Ernest Stringfellow is my new house. He'll be baptized soon, and given a very good blessing. He'll be dedicated to God, and when we say "As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord", we mean it. He'll understand. I'm sure he'll be happy that a permanent resident is living in him rather than a lot of different rental dwellers.

    Since the last resident, he's gone through quite a change. He was nearly gutted and restored. He had a complete makeover and, in some cases, was completely renovated. He has new kitchen flooring, cabinets, countertops, and appliances. He has new lighting too. Some of his walls were reworked, moved, redone, painted, and trimmed. He has many new features. I'm not thrilled about the carpet, but I'll live with it a year or so and then redo the rooms that have carpet; at least my office. I hate not being able to roll around easily in my chair. (Such a first-world issue)

    Clear to close! It means we don't have to worry anymore. We don't have to question whether the credit was high enough, whether the bills were paid off, or whether the loans and the paperwork were explained and given merit. I had to answer some really silly questions about things that didn't matter in 2026, considering the last time I even thought about that particular debt or paid off credit was over twenty years back. I worried about tax returns. I worried if I still owed anything. I worried that FHA was going to pull the rug out from under this one, like they did the last one.

    The last week has been miserable with all the questions FHA had, and the down payment assistance program OHFA asked for, too. We had to click every box and hold our breath, hoping I hadn't been overpaid or something. You have to be above a level and below a level. Then, out of the blue, a $192 bill appeared that hadn't been on the radar in over six years. In reality, it was a credit owed to me, but if I disputed it, I would have to wait 30 days! I just paid it. Then, because I paid it, my lender had to put a rush on the rescore, which meant he had to pay for it!

    This week, in fact, just two days ago, I had to take out the credit card that I had paid down and go out to dinner to be sure it was still in use! These people are really just too picky. Too, too, too picky!  It has to be JUST SO—which is next to impossible to make happen and even more so to maintain. Over the last month, my credit scores have been going up and down again because, when you apply for a loan, every creditor you've had pops up claiming you owe them. You don't, but if you dispute them, it takes 30-45 days to be disputed and another 30 days to be eliminated from the bureau! You just pay them.  One was over 18 years old, so I didn't pay it and let the hit happen. It didn't ding me too badly. I put it in the dispute and will let that one ride itself out.

    My stomach has gone through it too. I've been too close to my toilet for weeks on end due to the stress. I can't eat correctly. I do drink a lot of water and tea, but I've been unable to even think about being healthy. I just had to keep my mind occupied, so I wouldn't think about the endless possibilities of what sort of trouble I would be in if I wasn't able to close. I am literally out of my rental contract tomorrow, the same day I'm moving! My landlord is nice, and he's letting me come back on Saturday to clean.

    I worked this week, but it was really hard to focus. In my job, I call people who owe our clients money, and I'm supposed to be professional and nice. I wasn't nice. I found myself being less than nice, so I stopped calling people and just handled all interactions via email. I didn't want to subject anyone to my personal struggles - that wouldn't be fair. Once I got the go-ahead today, I was much, much nicer to everyone, and I could breathe again. It feels good to breathe.

    Certain songs and hymns, as well as passages from the Bible, kept me going, but I can tell you, I was not always in a praising mood. I had to literally pray through it a 1000 times, and even though I knew I was going to be OK, you aren't OK until FHA says you're OK.  If, for whatever reason, they decide to hold you up, they can, and you don't have a say in it. You just have to wait and jump through whatever hoops they decide you need to make a go of it — it's exhausting!  

    Finally -- today at 1:50 p.m. I got that email I wanted. "Clear to Close" and with it, the smiling face of my lender, Josh DeBlase of The Money Store. Now, all I need to do is figure out exactly how much I'm bringing to the closing table tomorrow. I had a number. It was a good number too, but as everything else changes, it changed as well. I'm really hoping it's lower. I can't know, but I know I'll be OK. Thank God, and I mean it when I say it, THANK YOU, GOD!!

    

Photo Credit: Pinterest.com

Not Yet!

     I am learning so much, and the thing is, I'm not doing anything to learn it. I'm simply sitting here at the old house, just waiting to be allowed to close on the new house. I'm learning that people who take vacations have a right to do so, but their employers don't give a damn about anyone really, because if they did, they'd find other people who were qualified to handle the cases left on the desks of the people who are vacationing. This is the situation I am facing now with the agency paying the down payment assistance. They are short-staffed.

    They are short-staffed and unable to schedule more than a few closings a day. This means those of us who are waiting to close on a house have to wait until they have enough staff to run their office and handle the paperwork or whatever is needed to send the closing papers to the lenders who have people like me bottlenecked and waiting to be allowed to sign on the dotted line. It makes me wonder, just as I wrote that, just how long the term "sign on the dotted line" will be with us. After all, we don't sign anything on lines really - it's all electronic.  I suppose it does resemble a line - and my signature sort of resembles my actual signature.

    Well, whatever happens, it is supposed to have already happened, and now we don't know when it will happen, but we know it wasn't today, and we know it isn't tomorrow. Wednesday isn't looking great, but I'm being told that if they can get the paperwork to my lender on Wednesday, we will be able to move on Friday. Then, almost as if on cue, my realtor wrote to say she has another closing on Friday and doesn't know if she can make it. I have three words for her: "Yes, you will". 

     It is unbelievable how people can simply go on vacation knowing others are waiting to exchange a quarter of a million dollars from one party to the next. That's just me. I'm just one of several, one of many, I'm sure. Sure, people deserve to go on vacation, but if you do - that doesn't mean the world stops turning! There needs to be backup. There needs to be stand-ins; there needs to be prearranged arrangements for those times. Surely, there are other employees who can be trained to take over for a day or so, so that the flow of commerce isn't so abruptly interrupted.

    Let's take my circumstance: I am the buyer. I will sign to take over the house from a seller. Those people need their money from the sale to get into the house they are waiting to buy. There are insurance companies to consider, electricians, plumbers, fencing companies, utility vendors, and internet service providers who have been scheduled and then rescheduled, and yes, again and again, rescheduled. There comes a point where they just say, "call me when you're actually closing", as if you (I) have anything to do with them being put off. I have NOTHING to do with it.

    What about the man who owns the house I'm in now? Why should he have to wait for me to clear out? He wants to get it fixed up and back on the market. What about the people selling their place to the people I am buying my place from? The list goes on and on.  If the group of people who are causing the bottleneck has never experienced this, it would be surprising. I could bet, and probably win that bet, that they've been in this situation a number of times. Maybe the summertime is the worst time to buy or sell a house because of this particular glitch; I have no idea. What I do know is that I really hope I never have to experience it again.

    I've Googled it, and I'm being told that lenders, realtors, buyers, sellers, and everyone simply have to wait on the agency if they want their down payment assistance. It's their game, their ball, their field, and their call. We're just at their mercy, and I suppose we're expected to smile and thank them for their service. It's a 2nd mortgage, so they get the money back in time. They could at least have a little more respect for the process; that's all I'm saying.

    It looks like it is likely going to happen on Friday. The last day of the month. This means I don't even get to take advantage of a single day of free mortgage time other than the 31 days of August. If I were to close August 3, Monday, I'd have 28 days in August and all of September before I had to pay the first mortgage payment - I can't win. I just can't win. Oh well, I may as well suck it up and just keep smiling. Soon, and very soon, I'll be out of this place and into the new one. This entire experience will be behind me, and I can relax and let the stress turn into a fart and leave my body! 

    

Photo Credit: Pinterest.com

Growing VERY Impatient.

     It is the 25th of July, and I was supposed to be completely moved by today. I had a closing date of May 18 for the first house, then June 18th for the same house, and that's when we were told it wasn't going to happen. We weren't going to close on the original house. So on June 19, I was out looking for new houses, and I only had until July 21 to get out of this one. That's not great. I don't know about you, but I like to take my time when I'm looking at an investment; after all, your house is the most expensive thing you'll probably ever buy.

    I had 31 days to find and close on a house. That's what we were told, and that is how we operated because it just made sense to do all we could do as fast and as effectively and efficiently as we could. The first house I looked at was wonderful. It met all my needs, but the seller was unwilling to sell it for what it was worth. He was holding out for what he wanted, and the difference was too great for me to consider. We wasted almost a week with that house—we were losing precious time. Thankfully, the landlord allowed us to stay until we close. 

    My realtor found the one we're going to move to. It was on the MLS list, but didn't pop up when I pulled houses up using the same criteria she used. I don't know, but I think realtors have secret gems they and they alone know about. Anyway, she showed us this one, and it was too expensive, but it would have to do.  The difference is, it would appraise for what the sellers were asking for. It did, in fact, appraise for $9000 more, and that's what I ended up paying - $9000 more than an already expensive house. Don't ask me why - it's complicated.

    "Creative financing" is what it is called. The lender did his thing in order to force the sellers to come up with a lot more money at closing than I needed to bring. It was all about credits, not cash, so yeah, I had to buy the house for more, to essentially get the credits, so I didn't have to drum up $$$ at closing. It works, but there is a catch. I am paying more for about a year, then I'll refinance and lower the payment. Geez...no one tells you these things when you set out to buy a house. They smile and help you bend over every other step of the way.

    Every weekend for the past four weekends now, I've driven by the house to look at it. I check out the neighborhood, see if anyone is walking around. I check the garages, the porches, and the yards of the people around me to see what type of neighbors I have. I am so happy that no one is a junk-car collector, nor do they have 6 or 7 cars up on ramps in their front yards. Everyone seems to be respectful of others. We have a lot of American flags, garden gnomes, potted plants, and porch benches. I'm about to buy a porch bench myself.

    If I'm in town looking at my house, I always swing by S&S Bargains on Bickford so I can browse and see what I can't live without. I found two things today: the bench I was telling you about, and the queen-sized tribal blanket. I asked Steve (co-owner with his wife Shelly) if he knew who made the blankets and which tribe they are from. He said they were basically representative of Native cultures, but not necessarily one or two individual tribes. They can't be called a Navajo print, or a Chickasha print. They are just simply beautiful, colorful, and have a really nice vibe. I bought one.

    I bought the bench too. As I was writing this blog, I realized that if I don't buy the bench, someone else will, and I'll have to buy one, and Laura will have to put it together. The same bench online is $149, and she'd rather I didn't make her put it together, so yes, I got back into the car, drove back to S&S, and paid $100 for the bench. Since Steve is the one helping me move, he'll keep it at his place until he brings the trailer over to move my household to Oliver.

    I know it sounds crazy, but I do prefer naming a house rather than just living in it without giving it a name. I pray over it. I'd rather say "Lord, please watch over Oliver" than "please watch over my house." It's a personal thing.  I decided I'll put a lot more time, effort, and money into keeping Oliver pretty, decorated, maintained, and protected. I'm getting cameras for the four corners of the house, a Ring doorbell, and maybe a really cool projector for my bedroom so I can lie in my bed with my dogs and watch the ocean, the planets, or something else all around me. I think at least one of the dogs will appreciate it.

    We are waiting for FHA to pull the trigger. All of my paperwork is done. I've signed everything; they've checked my employment, bank statements, taxes, and credit. All of the boxes are checked. I'm literally just waiting for them to have time to meet us for the closing. We were told it was Friday, then we were told it was Monday. Now, we're being told it will be this coming week - but no exact date. It makes it hard to call the utility companies and have things put into my name, but I decided to just do it, and it won't make a difference if it is just a few days. The one I can't have go ahead is the fiber for the internet - they need to go inside my attic.

    My hauler, Steve, is very patient. He'll be available when I need him, and that's wonderful. I try to buy what I can from him if he's got it. I don't need new things all the time. I will say that my linens and blankets, and such, will be new, but I buy furniture from Steve.  I think I'm good - I think I have just about all I need.  We will have to keep a better eye out for the Amazon drivers because we're not in the country, and there could be porch thieves. I'm hoping the cameras will deter them. We'll see.  We haven't had anyone steal anything even when we lived in the middle of the urbanized city we moved from, so hopefully there will not be an issue now.

    It's hard to wait—it is so very hard to wait. All of the rooms in my house are boxed up. I have only a few clothing items out and have washed them because the rest are packed. Things are packed; they are in the way, in the hall, in the center of each room, and just waiting to be loaded, then unloaded, and eventually unpacked. It will happen. I know it will happen, but I am not waiting patiently. I'm just waiting - trying to smile.  Knowing what I am going to do soon keeps me going. Driving by Oliver is both helpful and sad. I want to move, and I know it will be soon, but it isn't happening just yet.

    At least now that Oliver will be home to a permanent family instead of all of the rental families he's been a house for, he'll be loved, cared for, and decorated. He'll stand out, and he'll be welcoming. He'll be the house in the corner with the bright porch, the happy lights, and the barking dogs -- yes, we do have those, but others do too. I spoke to my neighbor's dog today, as a matter of fact. I thought it was a husky, but it's a husky and collie mix - so pretty. I told him/her to wait—just a little longer.

Photo Credit: Me. I bought it. S&S BARGAINS in El Reno, OK.

Closing Date is SET!

     Last year at this time, I was living in Oklahoma City in a nice little house, but it was not in the best of areas. It was the only house in the Lake Stella complex; every other residence was an apartment. I lived in the Lake Stella apartments for 9.5 years (the last time), and then Laura and I moved to the house in July 2024.  I remember thinking I would probably never leave; they'd have to carry me out and bury me. I thought I had found my forever home. 

    Well, as it turns out, driving around the City of El Reno for no reason whatsoever other than I liked the drive from the city, and I liked the city of El Reno, ended up giving me the feeling that I could actually buy a house in El Reno, and probably be just as happy as I was in my new little rental. I had lived in the house one year, and it was nice, but it had issues. We couldn't let our dogs out for more than 10 minutes at a time without neighbors complaining of their barking. Hello, we have dogs! It's allowed!

    I got in my car, drove to El Reno, and began looking at places to live in my mind. I found dozens of places I really liked, and after I got home, I looked them up on Zillow and found out I could own a house for about what I was paying in rent. There would be other costs associated with moving; I knew that, but I was working, and I knew if I saved for 6-10 months, I could do it. I needed to have been on my job for two years, and that would happen in about 8months, so yeah, I made a plan in my head to do just that - move to El Reno, Oklahoma, and buy a house of my own choosing! (That didn't happen)

    Did I mention I have a daughter who lives with me? She has always, since the day she was born, planned my life. I don't really have to think about anything - she has it all worked out. I just have to fork out the money -- again, it's always been that way. Laura didn't want just a house. She wanted land. She wanted to start a horse rescue, and if we were moving, we may as well do it for the last time -- good plan. We found a place, and since neither the realtor nor the lender said it wouldn't work, we put a contract on the house in October -- 6 months before my two-year anniversary at work. (We should have waited)

    As time went by, I regretted the contract in so many ways. It was too expensive when it came right down to it, and then there were the other expenses, the horses! We put far (well, I put far too much) too much money into the livestock, the fencing, the accessories, the tools, the equipment, and it added up very, very quickly. I was flat over my head, but I kept telling myself it would all work out - some day. It didn't work out. I was stuck. Late into the contract, after we had a closing day set, my lender told me that FHA would not fund the house; not the way it was. The horse ranch part of it needed to be cut away from the house part of it, because there were oil operations too close to every part of the back acreage. It was a no-go.

    I can't tell you how upsetting it was. I can't tell you because if I get started, I'll really let out the wildcat inside of me, and it won't be pretty, and I'll end up cussing, cursing, sending damnations out, and it wouldn't look good for a Christian woman to do that; it just wouldn't be good. I'll stop myself before I start myself. We couldn't buy the house, and the sellers refused to split it so we could at least have a house and 3 acres to have a couple of horses for Laura's sake - nope, they said no, and flat refused. We had to leave. Leaving meant selling literally everything I had sunk my hopes into and everything Laura had wanted - gone.

    We were given just 26 days to find a house and to have it inspected, and to have it worked on, and closed before our rental agreement came to a close - an abrupt close. The sellers of this house did finally concede to allowing up enough time to find the house we needed and to close, but trying to find one that would pass inspection, FHA appraisal, and our own preferences was going to be really hard. So, what did we do? We picked the one my realtor said would appraise for what they were wanting. There are and have been too many houses for sale that silly sellers think will appraise for more than they are worth. Did you know, the bigger a house is, the more likely it is to appraise because the price per square foot is lower? Crazy!

    We ended up with a bigger house than we have ever lived in. It is 2148 sf, and that's not including the basement. It has a real basement with its own sub room -- not kidding. The new house was not the one we would have picked, but we love it. It's massive, but we'll survive. It's expensive, but again, we'll make it happen. The thing is, we were told we have to close by July 24 and this was AFTER I had sunk another $839 for inspections and $1500 for earnest -- they told me I had to close by July 24 or lose that money too...just like I lost it when I put down $640 for inspections, and $1500 earnest on the house I live in now...not to mention over $13,000 in livestock and fencing.

    The lender saved me. He has saved me a few times. He had the wherewithal to ask me to buy the house for what it appraised at so we could ask the sellers to bring far more money to the table than they wanted to. They didn't want to fix anything, but they had to. It was in the contract, and what needed to be fixed were things that FHA wasn't going to allow anyone to buy/loan unless they were fixed. Too many sellers think their older homes will go "as is," but FHA doesn't do "as is," and more than 80% of homes are purchased by people needing a loan. (I didn't know that and about 99 other things until I found myself swimming in all the muck I've been swimming in during the two sales of these two houses.)

    To say I've been through the wringer would be a better experience than what I've been through. I promised God I wouldn't lose it when I wrote about it, but He knows. He's the one who had to scrape me off the floor a few times, and wipe my face after I'd been bawling for hours over nearly everything that could go wrong, and a dozen things no one expected would or could go wrong. They all happened. They all happened one right after the other, and then the lender came in and saved me again and again and again. I really love that man!

    Friday - it happened FRIDAY of last week. Josh DeBlase of The Money Store texted my realtor and me, telling us it was done. We had a closing date. He believed it was going to be July 24, but he spoke too soon. We did have to amend it because the sellers haven't been able to get the electrician in to do what they need to do in order to meet FHA standards. I will now meet with Josh, my realtor, the sellers, and the Title people at The Chicago Title Company on Monday, July 27, 2026, and we will close the house! There is just something extraordinary about that -- and I thank God for the result.

    Josh worked the numbers and made it possible for me to come to the closing with only $1971 out of my pocket since I've been out so much already for this and the new house, and though I will never get back what I spent on the livestock and fencing, I know never to do it again - and I know that the experiences we had here were not bad - 99% of them were really good. I would have stayed if I were allowed to stay. It felt like home.  

    A new chapter. The last house, I hope. I do hope this is it. If Laura has to have a horse rescue in the future, she'll have to carry the burden alone. I can't do it anymore. I just can't. I know she knows, and I know she understands and respects my decision. Our house will be better than accommodating; it will be a bright, bold, beautiful place to live. We'll decorate the front yard for several holidays, mingle and get to know the neighbors, and be really active in the community. That's not something we could do in the country - we're city folk now.

    We went over the facts, and one of them is that even though we lived around children, we didn't see children at the apartments or at the little house. We haven't had children running around the house and neighborhood since 2014. It will be nice to see them again -- there's a park right behind our house, and I know we'll get a load or twelve of them on Halloween. We now live in that sort of neighborhood. We now live in a hood that flies the American flag, rocks the porch decor, has impromptu block meetings in the cul-de-sac, and the school bus comes by our house too -- every day.

    It's a good day. Monday, July 27, 2026, will be a great day. The utilities are scheduled to be switched, the internet will be transferred, and my good friend is moving me with his 16-foot trailer - I don't even have to get a U-Haul. I love our community. I love that I just had to ask, and people were willing to be there -- I know I will be there for them as well. One year ago, I wanted to be here. I'm here, and I am not going to leave.

AI fun.

New Bed (Soon)

     Two years ago, when I moved to the little house on the Lake Stella complex, I gave up my queen-sized bed. It was big, heavy, very heavy in fact, and it was imposing in the smaller space that I had. The new room was actually one foot shorter, and I knew the bed would be overpowering for the room. I gave it up, and I bought a full-size bed. At that time, I had four dogs, and three slept with me. I had Rose, Kiah, and Ginger in my bed until about 4:00 in the morning, when Rose would leave me for Laura, and her dog Kiba would replace Rose.

    Well, these days (and we don't know why), Kiba, Rose, Kiah, and Neo sleep with me. Ginger had her place; it was between my knees, and she'd lay her head on one or the other. Neo prefers to sleep against my side, and the only problem with that is that he invades Kiah's lower side space. He kicks around until she's uncomfortable, and she leaves me. She leaves me to sleep on the couch in the living room, where she is forced to sleep alone! Can you even imagine how that must feel? I know, I can't.

    Well, Rose still has her large portion, of course, seeing how she is the larger dog. She chooses to sleep on the left side of the bed, mostly in the middle, which, if she were considerate, she'd move up closer to my head to give Kiah space. She is not really all that considerate. Kiba sleeps under the covers and in a tiny space wherever he can hide and fit, that is, until Laura comes in and steals him from me. She's the jealous type, you know. She could have a perfectly good black dog from the couch, but no, she has to take my ankle warmer. 

    There is a solution. It will only cost me $300 and the loss of my current bed. I'm going to buy a bed from my good friend Steve, who has for the past nine months supplied me with literally every piece of furniture I need, including a really nice used refrigerator. Today, since we're talking about it, I bought a little table to put my microwave on when I move because, as big as the kitchen is, it doesn't have the counter space for the extra appliance. 

    Steve has a new queen-sized mattress and spring set that are actually very nice, and at $300, very reasonable. The price actually includes the bed frame and headboard - they are not new. I think they were new at one time, sometime in the middle of the 20th century, but the fact that I can have a Sealy mattress and springs with the bed and box spring delivered and set up for only $300 is great. I'm just going to give my set to Steve to sell to someone else. If I tried to find someone, I'd have to let them into my house, and I wouldn't get more than $200 tops. I'm OK with it -- the dogs will benefit.

    Of course, when you switch bed sizes, you have to buy new linen, comforters, pillows, shams; you know...the works. I'm looking forward to that. In fact, Steve's shop has new Native printed quilts and covers that will look exceptionally good - very brightly colored. The mixture of animal textures, such as Rhodian Ridgeback-Pitty, a Schnauzer-Collie, a Dachshund, and a Chihuahua-Pom, is welcome. I can see it now. I'll go use AI to make it happen, and I'll add it to the bottom so you, too, can live my dream.

    The AI didn't capture the style of the bed perfectly, but you get the gist. The bed I have now just doesn't make sense to try to squeeze myself into and rest on if my dogs can't be comfortable. I don't want to worry about Kiah every night and whether she's having bad dreams because no one is there to snuggle with her. I mean, she has the white kitten, but it's not the same. Neville thinks she's a good pillow and he's content to stay with her most nights, but again, it's not the same.

    The new house has a new room for me, and it is bigger. It's a lot bigger in fact. I could get a king-sized bed and maybe even get another dog, but the city limit is four, so I'll probably just keep the four I have.  Some people will live their entire lives without ever sleeping with dogs. I won't call her out, but I have a best friend who doesn't allow her dog to sleep with her - and for the life of me, I just don't understand that reasoning. How can you feel safe without four heads vying to kiss you at the same time when the alarm goes off? (The joy she's missing out on just makes me cry a little inside.)

    So, the plan is: Move next week, and when Steve brings his trailer to move my stuff, he can bring the new bed, pick up the old one when we're done, and bam! All is well in the Stringfellow home when it comes to creature comforts -- you did know that's what the turn of phrase means, right? You're supposed to keep your creatures comfortable! I'm just doing my part.

AI generated.

It's Official. I am Moving!!

     If you haven't been keeping up with my roller coaster of a time about whether I'm moving, you wouldn't be alone. I have probably lost a few good friends over the stress I've been under and what I've put on others because of what has been put on me! It's a vicious, ugly cycle, and I don't recommend it for anyone. You don't lose weight with this sort of stress; instead, you pack it on! I'm not happy about much of what has been going on, but THANK YOU, JESUS...I am officially signed and ready to close.

    The appraisal on the house needed to come in at a higher level so that the sellers would or could bring more to the table. They were literally not wanting to give concessions - even though every single seller I have ever met or known has given their buyers tons of concessions. My lender came to the rescue on that one; it was both a miracle and a lot of creative financing. He is a great man, and if I haven't sung his praises enough, I will do so now. Josh DeBlase of The Money Store! If you need a home loan or a refinance, call Josh!!

    The appraisal came in. It appraised for about $ 3,500 more than we needed it to, so it's a great thing. We were able to get the sellers to bring in a few $$ for concessions. This makes it easier for me to close. I've already sunk close to $ 3,000 into the house with earnest money, inspections, and the cost of the appraisal.  For them not to bring in a little of their own was a bit discouraging, to say the least, but they have agreed to do so, so I'm very happy. Now, they have to fix what needed fixing about 20-25 years ago, and do it before we close next week.

    The main issues with the house, as you can imagine, because it is a 1971 model, are electrical. The HVAC needs a tune-up. I'll end up replacing it next year. It has breaker panels that will have to be removed and replaced, and there are a few plugs and outlets that are not working and have to be repaired. There are one or two smaller issues that can all be handled by the same professional when he/she comes to do the work this coming week.  I think the only thing they didn't want to pay for was the piers, but I don't think the house needed them. I think the pier guy just said it did to get a little something - well, no. I don't play games.

    Once the breakers and electrical issues are fixed and the HVAC is tuned up, I'll be able to sign the papers, exchange my closing costs, pick up the keys, and meet the movers at my old place. I'll have the garage set up and ready to be packed into the U-Haul -- we're doing that all weekend and the first part of next week. I'll get as much out as I can the first day, and whatever is left will be hauled off to donations and/or the trash bins. I'll sweep, mop, steam-clean, and have the front lawn mowed by a really cool guy (a veteran) who runs his own little business. He's been amazing these past 4 months.

    I've already scheduled the electric, gas, water, and internet transfers. All I need to do now is put all the things I own in this house into the new house and set it up so I can sleep in my new house with my dogs -- and wake up ready to hit that big, bold, beautiful shower with 8 shower heads built into the front of it. I'm not even sure I will be able to figure it out, but I will give it my best. It has been a long, arduous, difficult road to walk, and most of the time, I felt as if I was crawling up that road backward, but finally, we are at the end.

    Not immediately, but close to it, we'll have to put in a gate so Laura can go to the park that is literally behind the house. She'll want to walk her dogs there, and so will I. I'll add a small kitchen island, and probably get Christmas lights before they go up in price - I plan on really taking full advantage of the curbside beauty of my little house with seasonal decorations. First comes Autumn, then Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, Easter, Summer, and the Fourth of July -- I think I'll put things away after that until Fall again -- but it will be fun. It will be pretty. It will be home.

    I can't say enough about how God has helped me in my times of crying and rejoicing. He has just always been there, keeping me somewhat sane. This past week, you would not have thought I was keeping much of it together. Learning to fully trust God is difficult, but since we end up doing it more and more these days, it isn't that hard to do. My timing is never good - His is always perfect. Let go, and let God!

A little AI fun.

Conditionally Approved.

     My loan is conditionally approved. It will need to go through an appraisal, but that's it. I just have to get the sellers to sign off on the TRR, a list of things that I've requested they repair or fix before we close, and we're good. The TRR is a standard practice, of course, but it varies and can be used as a tool for leverage in most cases. In my case, because I was sort of thrown into the mess and didn't have the luxury of choosing the exact house I wanted, the TRR is a way of saying, "Hey, I realize there are some issues, but I'm willing to do what I can do, and you guys do the rest."  There are two things on the TRR that I simply can't do - they must be handled by the sellers.

    Believe me, after I close, I'll be much more forthcoming about my true feelings about all that has happened. In all of this, there has been one good, strong, positive ray of light: I chose the right lender. I picked him. He was not picked by my realtor. I found Josh DeBlase of The Money Store, and I will sing his praises from this day forward. It's been a great honor and privilege to work with him. He was lied to, he was lied about, and I'm sure he could tell you I was too. It's not going to let either of us blink an eye -- we know we're good.

    Today, Josh sent up my paperwork for approval by the underwriters, and it was approved. The email states "Your loan has been conditionally approved", and that means I need to fulfill the remaining duties and tasks that are required, and then we close. The main thing will be the appraisal. As soon as the sellers agree to the TRR and send out their electrician to do the repairs, the appraisal can take place. They'll go in, tell me I need to install a railing in the basement, and I'll order one on Amazon and have it delivered the next day. Laura can put it in. I may even do that now, just to have it ready. (pause)

    I just now ordered it on Amazon for $78.00, and of course, there's tax, but that's not bad for a good, strong rail that Laura can install and that will get us in compliance. We'll put it in as soon as they allow us to. It's one of those things where yes, 9 times out of 10, the buyer asks the seller to do, but again, a dollar here or there is not going to stand in my way of closing. I have very little time left and need to use my time wisely. I volunteered to screw in the loose electrical fixture, but they told me it had to be done by an electrician. There are a few little electrical things they have to address; I'm not allowed. I didn't make them pay for piers because I don't think the house needs piers. If it does, I'll pay for it later - it's something that the sellers will put up on credit so they don't have to dish out a bunch of money up front.

    I've asked them to tune up the old HVAC and provide me with a 1-year warranty for the entire house. I've asked them to address the old breaker panels because they are no longer insurable. They were insurable until the house was sold, but now that it's being sold, those panels will have to be replaced. I think the sellers were aware of that fact. They'll have to replace or repair a bib spigot outside, and I'll do the rest. The house is basically move-in ready, but the insurance carriers will make them fix the breakers first - I think they can maybe even get away with giving a letter of intent and putting up the money into an escrow holdback to satisfy the contract.

    Conditionally Approved!! That means once the sellers sign off on the TRR, they'll order the repairs, and the FHA will give them a few days to do that before we can close. I think we have the 24th blocked out for the close, and then Laura and I will return to clean once the big stuff has been taken to the house. She and I will do 10-15 loads in my car since it's literally 1.2 miles from where we live now. It will be easy enough to just take what we can and then do one big load in the moving truck -- I've hired a great man to help with that too. I assume he'll have help, but he's apt to just do it himself.

    It's been a roller coaster for sure. I'm glad it's almost over, and if things were my way, it would already be over. My best friend likes to remind me that only the strangest things happen to me -she's not wrong. I wouldn't wish this mess on anyone. If I can do it, I'll do it. I'd rather go through it and suffer than let someone I love muddle through it -- then again, Laura has been the most hurt. We'll survive. God is too good. In just under two weeks, we'll be home - truly home.

Photo Credit: The Money Store (ask for Josh)

Complete Wuss! (Me)

         It's so stupid, so dumb, so annoying, and so unnecessary, but it is absolutely true; I am (or have become) such a wuss in my old age. I am in the middle of packing up my house so I can move again, and I get maybe 10 minutes into it and have to quit. It has come to the point where I have to plan in my head exactly what will take place in those precious 10 minutes of energy, and then, around the 11th minute, my mind is still working, but a nerve in my back begins to twitch, and my chest forgets to expand.

    This aging thing isn't easy; I can tell you that. We have to move again, and what makes me so very angry is that we knew in our hearts that the last time we moved would be our last time to move. It wasn't, and the entire time since we found out, we've had nothing but anxiety mixed with being upset about it, and all that causes lower gut issues, not to mention heart and mind issues. I'm finding myself having to (or getting to) pray more and more about it, because I'm not able to stop myself from conjuring ways to torture those I feel are to blame.

    The truth is, it's not just one thing that caused all this mayhem. It was a few small things that a couple of trusted individuals caused.  Both share the blame, but if I'm honest, I know which one I attribute most of the blame to. I won't say now, but believe me, the characters in my next book, "The Trust," will have no reason to hold back any of their emotion. I have to hold my tongue (or keyboard) for now because the deal isn't closed. I'm in the deep middle of the upset and just can't wait to sit in my new home, in my new office at this very desk and type my hurt and feelings away - right into the pages of the 10th installment of the Nick Posh thrillers.

    So, I got up a while ago and had two boxes ready to go. I unfolded them, taped up the bottoms, and faced the pantry in my hallway to unload the things I don't use, don't need, shouldn't have brought with me this time, and will not be taking to the next house. Why in the world I thought I had to have a small deep fryer and a tortilla press, I don't know. I used the deep fryer exactly one time. I never even opened the tortilla press - they will both be donated. They'll be donated, as well as the little screw thing that you put a potato in, and it makes curly fries - used it twice for zucchini, and that's it. 

    I'm also giving away my old juicer. It was used a great deal. It is too big, too bulky, but still works just fine. Someone may like it. I'm also giving away the old glass kettle with the base. It's larger than we wanted. It works. Hopefully, someone will say "OMG! I have always wanted one of these!" That's the hope. Meanwhile, after packing just two boxes, my back aches, my breath is labored, and I'm almost sweating. Damn! It's only 70 degrees in my house. It has to be me.

    Earlier today, I did the same thing with the two boxes (it seems to be a limit now), and I faced my office closet. I had already packed most of the closet last week, but I finished the last two boxes today. No donations there.  One box was all of my books, notebooks, and extra paper that I use for writing my novels. Each book is thought out first in a little tartan-covered notebook. Most of the time, two of my novels will share a notebook. The book "Shadow" has its own. I have lots of notes for that one.

    Later today, when I can muster another 10 minutes to do something, I'll go into my bathroom and pack what I need. I'll leave out a single towel and wash it every third or fourth day until we move. I'm doing the same thing with my bedding. I am using just one set of sheets, but they get washed every Saturday. By Friday, the amount of mud clots from the dog's paws is rather amusing. I end up shaking the sheets onto the floor and vacuuming the next day. Maybe I should leave out two sets of sheets -- nah!

    The hallway will be done tomorrow. That will conclude all the packing I have to do. The rest of the house will be Laura's responsibility, and she has the weekdays to pull it off. I have to work during the week, but it's all good. We'll get it done. I couldn't do more than I can anyway—it's the saddest of sads, really —to see yourself in the mirror and wonder who the old lady is and why she's in your bathroom.  If she's just going to stand there, she may as well be useful. 

Photo Credit: Wheaton Moving Company