Lately: Another House?

Now that I'm back in Seattle for the foreseeable future, we're kinda-sorta-maybe looking to buy a house again. After paying a mortgage on the Gig Harbor house, paying rent for an apartment just feels so futile.  And since the prospectus for the area is so positive for the next 10+ years, we decided now is better than later.  My lease doesn't expire for another 6-ish months, but we've put a toe back in to the real estate market.

But you guys, this is crazy.

I started by re-educating myself about the market using current inventory and past comps.  And when I saw what it looks like, my first reaction was:

Prices have increased by like $100,000 across in the last 2 years.  So that took a while to get over (like 2 months).  I kept obsessively researching and apparently I have to read the same thing from about 120 different sources for me to half-heartedly accept that this is where things are at.  

But then I finally made a list of potential properties in multiple areas and starting looking at them one by one.

There were 7 houses (in 4 different neighborhoods) in my first list, and this is basically how looking at them went:

So I took a 2 week break while Steven and I re-assessed whether we really wanted to do this.  In the end, the answer was still yes.  But I had to give myself a little pep talk before making and seeing another list.

Going forward, I decided to work my way through one neighborhood at a time to keep it a little more focused.  But it didn't go very well and I was getting pretty discouraged by what I was seeing:

And then about a month ago, I went back to Gig Harbor for a visit.  

Since then, we've accepted that we'll be happiest on the west side of the Puget Sound.  That area really encapsulates what we love about living in the Puget Sound, and luckily for us it's a little more affordable.  So now we at least know the general area we'd like to stick to.

And we're continuing the hunt for a specific house or property.  But the more we look, the more we're coming around to the idea that our best option is to buy a few acres with a meh (okay, in most cases down-right shitty) house, tearing it down, and rebuilding.

It's a daunting idea, but relatively attractive considering our other options.  And maybe it's just this time of year, but I'm feeling a lot like I did a year ago when I was packing.

So there. In the space of the last 5 months I've gone from "omg I'm so bored in Dubai" to "maybe we'll just build a custom house on the Puget Sound."

Sounds about right.

Evening Plans

You guys!  I finished work at a reasonable time tonight (6:30pm)!

I had a whole night with endless possibilities.  And then I realized I have no idea what to do with myself.  I  know I really need to, but I haven't cultivated anything to do since coming back...except work.

But whatever!  I'm a free bird.

So naturally, I went to Home Goods and bought a dog bed, came home and changed into my sweats/PJs, took Phoebe to the bathroom 3 times, and grocery shopped (yep, in that order).  And of course, I chatted with Steven the whole time.  And this:

Living on the edge.

Phoebe in Seattle, again

PHOEBE IS HERE.

I picked her up from the Seattle airport on Friday and we haven't been apart since.  She spent the first 10 minutes of the ride home very dramatically whining at me, and I'm certain she was telling me the story of her arduous journey.  I made sure I nodded sympathetically, and injected lots of "really?" and "it's okay" and "well you're home now" type of comments.  She seemed satisfied.

And so far it's been pretty smooth.  We had one small (or large if we're really honest) pee incident about 30 minutes after arriving in the apartment, but that was my fault.  I'm a little out of practice when it comes to telling the difference between "Play with me" and "I have to pee" whines.  Clearly, it was the latter.  Good thing we have a heavy-duty carpet cleaner.

She was bouncing off the walls after we got home, so we walked to get a cup of tea and shared a cookie.

The "don't eat all my cookie" face.

I forgot the Chuck-it, so my arm-throwing distances were pathetic.  She was gracious and didn't make fun of me.

Tired, happy, and blurry.  Ball chasing (or maybe flying across the world) is exhausting.

But my poor Sven.  Now he's all alone and I can't help feeling sad for the loss I know he feels.  Phoebe is a giant bag of snores most of the time, but caring for her does wonders to stave off the worst of loneliness.  I've been really mopey lately and having her around is already helping.  Currently, she's laying beside me on the couch, snoring and farting on me at the same time.  How sweet it is to be a dog lover.

In happier news, all three of us will be together in a few weeks!  Steve's just popping in for a quick visit, but we're counting down the days.

Music: Saturday Songs

Sad songs are kind of my thing (although Sarah circa 2000 - 2008 definitely has me beat).  Of all the music that I really love, I'd say at least 70% is kind of (or a lot) heartbreaking in one way or another.  It's the same with my taste in books - it isn't good unless I feel something grave.  I used to complain about it in high school - we only ever read books about misery and heartbreak and catastrophe.  I thought it was so depressing/perplexing and I couldn't understand why learning them was so important.

But as I've gone through life (or life has gone through me), my appreciation for the bluer side has changed drastically.  Life is hard and full of obstacles and no one gets through it unscathed - but that's part of the allure.  After 15 years of making "grown up" decisions and living the consequences, I've come to believe that hardship (however big or small) and the choices we make in the face and wake of it, are what shape a person's character.  And to me, that's a really inspiring and beautiful concept.  The hardest and most harrowing experiences of our lives are the ones that give us the greatest opportunity to be the kind of people we want to be.

And long story short - somewhere in all the hurt of a sad song I find hope.  A little crazy, eh?

Whatevs, even if it doesn't make perfect sense, I still dig 'em.  And these are the ones on repeat today.

Making Pies by Patty Griffin



If it's the Beaches by the Avett Brothers



Widower's Heart by Trampled by Turtles



Oh, and I also love bluegrass.  But that's a different thing altogether.