Catch Up
I SWEAR - I am posting the rest of the trip photos soon!
Mom and I started Saturday off right by going to the Original Pancake House. It is famous around here for their food. It was SO good! We then hit the roads and looked at every crap hole in west Portland. Mom had gotten down after Friday’s search, and I was very down after Saturday’s search. I had called around to a lot of places Friday night, and had gotten some places to look at, but after our day, I was afraid I would never find a place that I did not feel anxious at. They pack houses in backyards, alleys, and literally medians of roads, and people had their cars just piled up all over the place.
My goals for a rental house:
A good, safe place for the dogs
A good, safe place for the cars
A good, safe place for us
And as Jim says… someplace that will not suck out our souls!
Sunday was better. I had made an appointment to see a house Sunday afternoon, but I was having serious doubts about it. Mom and I decided to go just to have a benchmark to compare other houses to. When we drove by on Saturday, it was in a really good area, but we could not see it from the road. And it had some things that really bothered me… it was on a flag lot – meaning that the house sits behind another and the driveway runs along side of that house. It had no air conditioning (AC is really hard to find here). The owner said the backyard was small. But we went to see it.
Oh my god! We went in, and I loved it. It had HUGE windows, and a bedroom more than big enough for Jim’s gorgeous bed that his dad made. The living room had a gas fireplace, and the kitchen was huge and open. It even had a space that could serve as another living room with built in cabinets. The kitchen was tiled and light and airy. The windows! One whole side of the kitchen area was glass. There were 2 decks off the back and a large brick patio area. There was a large privacy fence, and all you could see was evergreens and plants. The backyard was so private! Mom had a cow when we went outside – it would be perfect for her to mess around in. It is perfect for the dogs – there is already a doggie door!
So I was sold. It was the first house that we had been inside, but it just felt so right. And the owner is so nice. She is a younger woman living in San Francisco who has a lab-boxer mix, so she never even hesitated about the dogs. We kept looking for the rest of the day, but my heart was set on that house.
We ended up on the north side of the interstate on a road called Skyline Dr. Well it was aptly named. It climbed high on a ridge, and you could see the entire city for miles on the road. It was gorgeous! There were multi-million dollar houses scattered on the hillside. On the other side of the hill were multi-million dollar houses facing Mt Hood and Mt Ranier.
Sunday night we moved over to the extended stay hotel. We had been staying at a really nice, but more expensive hotel. I thought the weekly rate and kitchenette might be nice. Well mom and I were grossed out when we went in. We had a MAJOR break in communication. She thought I wanted to stay and did not say she wanted to leave, and I did the same. It was dirty, loud, and VERY uncomfortable. I hardly slept, and unbeknownst to me – mom found a surprise in the bathroom. Gag. I have included a picture. Gag. Needless to say… we split on Monday and went back to our happy nice hotel. We slept like LOGS!
Monday I started work, and I had a great time. Everyone was happy to have me there, and I have never been hugged so much! Everyone was so nice and helpful. I really have my work cut out for me there!
And today I found out that we got the house. I feel really good about it, and I hope Jim likes it as much as I do. Poor Jim has been dealing with the realtors and moving guys. He has been such a trooper! I can move in on March 2nd. She is flying in then to check out the house and do some paperwork with me. I am SO excited! Now all I have to do is get the furniture, the dogs and JIM!
Mom and I went to the pie house for dinner tonight. We of course have been calling it the pie hole. Well now we call it the poop hole. It was yucky! We have been checking out the local grocery stores and stuff, so tonight I took her to Fred Meyer.. which is like a trashy Walmart – if you can imagine!
Mom and I started Saturday off right by going to the Original Pancake House. It is famous around here for their food. It was SO good! We then hit the roads and looked at every crap hole in west Portland. Mom had gotten down after Friday’s search, and I was very down after Saturday’s search. I had called around to a lot of places Friday night, and had gotten some places to look at, but after our day, I was afraid I would never find a place that I did not feel anxious at. They pack houses in backyards, alleys, and literally medians of roads, and people had their cars just piled up all over the place.
My goals for a rental house:
A good, safe place for the dogs
A good, safe place for the cars
A good, safe place for us
And as Jim says… someplace that will not suck out our souls!
Sunday was better. I had made an appointment to see a house Sunday afternoon, but I was having serious doubts about it. Mom and I decided to go just to have a benchmark to compare other houses to. When we drove by on Saturday, it was in a really good area, but we could not see it from the road. And it had some things that really bothered me… it was on a flag lot – meaning that the house sits behind another and the driveway runs along side of that house. It had no air conditioning (AC is really hard to find here). The owner said the backyard was small. But we went to see it.
Oh my god! We went in, and I loved it. It had HUGE windows, and a bedroom more than big enough for Jim’s gorgeous bed that his dad made. The living room had a gas fireplace, and the kitchen was huge and open. It even had a space that could serve as another living room with built in cabinets. The kitchen was tiled and light and airy. The windows! One whole side of the kitchen area was glass. There were 2 decks off the back and a large brick patio area. There was a large privacy fence, and all you could see was evergreens and plants. The backyard was so private! Mom had a cow when we went outside – it would be perfect for her to mess around in. It is perfect for the dogs – there is already a doggie door!
So I was sold. It was the first house that we had been inside, but it just felt so right. And the owner is so nice. She is a younger woman living in San Francisco who has a lab-boxer mix, so she never even hesitated about the dogs. We kept looking for the rest of the day, but my heart was set on that house.
We ended up on the north side of the interstate on a road called Skyline Dr. Well it was aptly named. It climbed high on a ridge, and you could see the entire city for miles on the road. It was gorgeous! There were multi-million dollar houses scattered on the hillside. On the other side of the hill were multi-million dollar houses facing Mt Hood and Mt Ranier.
Sunday night we moved over to the extended stay hotel. We had been staying at a really nice, but more expensive hotel. I thought the weekly rate and kitchenette might be nice. Well mom and I were grossed out when we went in. We had a MAJOR break in communication. She thought I wanted to stay and did not say she wanted to leave, and I did the same. It was dirty, loud, and VERY uncomfortable. I hardly slept, and unbeknownst to me – mom found a surprise in the bathroom. Gag. I have included a picture. Gag. Needless to say… we split on Monday and went back to our happy nice hotel. We slept like LOGS!
Monday I started work, and I had a great time. Everyone was happy to have me there, and I have never been hugged so much! Everyone was so nice and helpful. I really have my work cut out for me there!
And today I found out that we got the house. I feel really good about it, and I hope Jim likes it as much as I do. Poor Jim has been dealing with the realtors and moving guys. He has been such a trooper! I can move in on March 2nd. She is flying in then to check out the house and do some paperwork with me. I am SO excited! Now all I have to do is get the furniture, the dogs and JIM!
Mom and I went to the pie house for dinner tonight. We of course have been calling it the pie hole. Well now we call it the poop hole. It was yucky! We have been checking out the local grocery stores and stuff, so tonight I took her to Fred Meyer.. which is like a trashy Walmart – if you can imagine!
posted by Jill at 9:08 PM
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