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Our castle....


I began my earnest search for a new house several weeks ago. One might think that I have plenty of time as we are required to give 6 months notice before we can break our contract. Surprisingly, there aren't many houses available that meet our criteria.

A Dutch woman had posted an ad for a house. We e-mailed back and forth once or twice regarding the property. That evening, the phone rang. It was her, and it felt a bit invasive. I hadn't given her my number during our exchange. I asked how she got my number and she replied, "I just looked it up." I suppose she meant the Italian phone book?

We made arrangements to look at one of her listings. I knew it was a "No" from the moment I set my foot in the place, but I politely walked through the dingy rooms. I followed her diligently up the hazardous staircase, and I peered into the dark unfinished (meaning dirt floor) basement. "No, I don't need to see more of the basement," I assured her. I couldn't resist making a crack about how nice it would be to have a place to bury the dead bodies. Not sure if she caught that one.

Then I dropped the bomb....I innocently inquired, "Do the windows have screens?"

"You AMERICANS are SOOOOO SPOILED with your screens on all your windows!" She had quite a bit to say about it. I was dumbfounded by my own audacity.

So, in case anyone is wondering why we are spoiled- it's not the home pizza delivery, it's not the fast food restaurants with drive-thru windows, it's not the 24-hour shopping experience, it's not the drive-in car washes, it's not the after hour care centers, it's not the quickie marts, it's not my beloved coffee shacks of the Pacific Northwest, it's not air conditioning, our reckless wasting of non-renewable resources........it's the screens on our windows, people, the screens on our windows.


If all else fails, we had lots of fun with the astro turf last year!

Here are our hopes for a new place 1.) yard- prefer fenced in- and most of them are, 2.) some form of shelter for My Man's motocicletta, 3.) high speed internet (very easy for most places, except a little pocket of about four towns), 4.) screens on the windows...living like kings!

Comments

mimi and papa said…
Yet another adventure. Your requirements are reasonable and within reach, I believe. Since you have embraced a process approach to life's challenges, you see that taking a step at a time is the way to find just the right castle. Hope to help you with your search during our visit. So Miss spoiled American, what didn't you like about the dirt basement floor?? With a few lawn chairs, you could create a beach atmosphere "media room".
Mucho Amore, Mimi
March 1, 2008 at 4:11 AM
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