A few updates before bed:

• I’m in the inspection and repair phase on the house. Assuming I get the state rebate for removing that oil tank and assuming the general repair list does not cost more than the current estimate from my handyman, I may manage to end up with a little bit of cash (albeit a good bit less than even my downpayment) after closing. I’ll still be selling the place at a significant loss, but at least I’m not underwater. And it’s worth it to finally close that chapter of my life.
• I lucked out in that a couple of things I thought would be big issues–primarily some stairs the ex built that are sinking and have become a major eyesore but would also cost a fortune to remove, and some paving on the other side that drains in the wrong direction–were not fixes requested by the buyer. i dodged a bullet on those.
• Even better, I’m doing surprisingly well selling the furniture, which gives me cash and makes moving easier.
• Nashville was pleasant enough, all in all. My presentation went well and actually got a lot of positive feedback. I was able to do some Groceteria research and I may actually return for a weekend at some point, although I have no real desire for anything more than a weekend.
• I’ve had a pretty prestigious publication accepted. More on that later.
• I’m pondering my annual Thanksgiving trip to Toronto. I’ve been traveling a lot this year and I’m wondering if another big trip is a good idea. But I think I deserve a reward once the house is sold and the articles are done…and in general after the really shitty summer I’ve had. And the loonie is at an all-time low, so it’s a really good time to visit. I’ll keep you posted.
• I didn’t sit through the Republican debate last week. I started watching for laughs–kind of like you’d start watching a bad movie–but the plot and the dialogue were so implausible that I just couldn’t swallow it, even as a farce.

 

Let’s review the past week:

• Deal with mom being evicted from her facility for no rational reason and scramble around finding a new one over the weekend? Check.
• Deal with negotiating an offer on my house and how to fix what may turn out to be a $20,000 contingency on the sale? In progress.
• Visit my aunt in hospice on Friday afternoon, only to have her die five minutes after I arrive, and then squeeze the funeral into an already crazy weekend? Check. (Good thing I didn’t need much time to grieve.)
• Deal with physically moving all my mom’s stuff from The old facility to the new one? In progress.
• Deal with three other minor repairs in my house prior to the inspection on Monday? In progress.
• Try to actually do my job–which has a lot of things pending right now too–for a few hours? In progress.

Frankly that sounds like enough to me. But no. Tonight on my way home after a morning of phone calls followed by three hours of signing paperwork and one hour of moving crap, I got rear-ended. Which means I have one more thing on my plate to spend even more hours I don’t have dealing with. its drivable and I’m not hurt, but to say that I really don’t need this right now is a huge fucking understatement.

I’m not sure whether locusts or leprosy will be next.

I still manage to have my sense of humor, but it’s getting a little harder. If this were a fucking movie, no one would buy the plot.

I’ve been holding it together pretty well for the past two years, so please allow me to be a basket case this week. I will stop whining soon.

(BTW, suggestions and nursing home/insurance/construction horror stories are really not what I need at this point, particularly with my limited time and overloaded brain. This is a really specific situation and I pretty much know what’s going on. I would gladly accept generic moral support, though!)

It’s going to be a long month.

Aside from all the issues with my mom, which are resulting in her moving to a new facility sometime this week, my aunt passed away on Friday so there’s now a funeral in the mix as I prepare for the move.

And yesterday afternoon, I finally got an offer on the house. Unfortunately, the offer is a little low and has a pretty major contingency, which will prove time-consuming at a point where I don’t have a lot of time to spare. I’m really happy to finally have an offer, but the timing kind of sucks. Assuming the offer flies, they’re also be the issue of clearing out the house.

On top of everything else, I have a conference presentation in Nashville the week after next. I’m also in the middle of writing two articles, both of which are due in late August.  

I may find myself sleeping (or drinking) a lot in September.

i’ve been dealing with “Mom drama” for four years now. I honestly don’t think I can handle it much longer. Suffice it to say the United States does not deal well with its aging population–a fact that may bite us in the ass in the next two decades or so.

5:15 – Wake up. Make coffee.

5:30 – Realize I’m supposed to be at the TV station fifteen minutes earlier that I thought. Shower quickly.

5:50 – Leave the house.

6:10 – Arrive at Channel 2. Sit. Wait.

6:45 – Interview begins.

6:47 – Interview ends.

6:48 – Leave Channel 2. Grab breakfast. Kill time until library opens.

7:30 – Go to work.

10:30 – Leave for oral surgeon.

10:45 – Arrive at oral surgeon’s office. Complete paperwork.

11:05 – Begin examination.

11:07 – End examination. Pay $88.00 to find that my dentist was mistaken and that there’s nothing wrong with me.

11:15 – Leave office. Grab lunch.

12:00 – Back at work. Actually get things done.

3:30 – Start a project that really could have waited till tomorrow.

4:30 – Do not finish said project. Leave work. Drop coworker at mechanic.

4:45 – Home. Beer. Leftover soup.

5:30 – Really creepy movie on TCM.

8:00 – Too early for bed. Too late and too tired to do much of anything else, though I’m seriously contemplating doing at least one more thing that lasts two minutes but requires an hour’s prep.