So far it's a very companionable read.

Much better for me than the obsessively looking at the MLS.

LoveintheHouse...thanks for the book suggestion!

OT, but also checked out *My Formerly Hot Life*! Both of these books sound like fun reads for middle-aged females.

Thanks, LoveintheHouse, for recommending it. Funny, after I got about halfway through it I remembered reading her pieces in the New Yorker about fleeing to the hinterlands in quest of solvency, and all the huge buzz she generated at that time. You sure don't get any sense in the book of what a media celeb she already was.

I won't be a spoiler, but don't think it's too much info to say that I found the last pages very touching. I was quite moved by the final paragraph, and found it incredibly resonant with my own experience.

The book is a lot of fun for the most part, but in the end, quite poignant and thought-provoking.

"My Formerly Hot Life?" Now that sounds interesting.

I also like her many parenthetical phrases and that one one hyphenated clause within a paragraph-long sentence contained a semi colon. You can't express complicted house feelings without these devices.

I thought it was great that when she was about to get serious about her guy she had an irresistable urge to give the kitchen a facelift. Pretty sexy.

I think I'm going to see her tomorrow! She's at some college in NC, about two hours from me. I'll have to go alone because I don't know anyone else around here who'd be interested, but, hey, that chick drove from Nebraska to California all by herself. Well, except for Rex.

Btw, are you a writer/horse whisperer?

I keep a blog. It's called Greener Pastures--A City Girl Goes Country. If you like to read, check it out. I have some house stories on there. And horse stories. I don't really consider myself a horse whisperer because I don't do it as a business but I use the same techniques the character uses in that book when I am handling my horses. When I get too old to ride, I picture myself sitting on my front porch writing stories and watching my grandchildren ride ponies in the yard. What a life!

When I sell this house, I plan to write a book about my house-selling experiences. I don't want to say what the premise is yet. It's a surprise.

What do you like to do Stinky? I take it you're a gardener?

Your house, btw, is absolutely adorable. Love the ferns you just added to the porch. It has tons of curb appeal...just darling.

Wishing you continued good luck with "Bob!"

Enjoyed the pics of you on the farm. You are obviously a hard-working lady who leads a fascinating life!

Sorry it took me a while to get back here. I'm having a my large master bath gutted and re-done and I'm the "designer" & "GC." It's been a busy week, but progress is being made!

I'm sure Ms. Daum would characterize my feeble attempt at "renovation" as "half-assed," and I would agree, as this is merely a "rip and replace." There will be no re-configuration of the layout, no space added to the room, no additional features created that didn't exist before.

Still, I am hopeful that it will look one heck of a lot better without the giganormous yellowy-beige jetted tub, yellowy-beige tile surround, yellowy-being faux marble countertops, horribly faded oak vanities, beige tile floor with cracked grout, and (you guessed it) yellowy-beige plastic shower stall (with non-functional doors and skimpy circa 1987 chrome shower fixtures.) So... while the layout remains the same, at least the aforementioned nightmarish features will change!

On my "farm" the lawn will be core-aerated and seeded this week! Ah, suburbia! At my previous house in PA I did gardening, at this house in VA I do "yardening."

I don't watch much TV at all, but read that there is a new show called "Suburgatory." I'm going to coin that little gem for sure. One word that says it all!

Your bathroom sounds like my parents' old bathroom! I am sure it's going to be 100% better even without changing the layout. What are you doing to it? Are you getting it ready to sell it?

I'm glad you like my blog! I just love writing it. Once I move back I might have to change the name to Greener Pastures--A City Girl Goes Country... and Goes Back Again. I hope I have time because this time I'd like to document all the improvements and remodeling that we're going to do. At this place, when we bought it, there wasn't even heat. But I have to admit that the curb appeal was always here. The new place needs more cosmetic work. It's another old house but it's a disaster. Kitchen is big but '80s style like your bathroom. Olive green tub, sink, and toilet in one of the bathrooms. Believe it or not, I'm going to work with that. It's going to look very cool when I'm done. Notice the olive towels that all the stores are carrying? Olive is back! But when I was making the deal on the house, I said, "Ew, this bathroom needs to be gutted." When I really like it! lol There's a lot of other stuff that needs to be done but that's what we always do--fix them and that enables us to afford something better than we would have been able to get otherwise.

Those ferns are about exploding! Pretty soon I'm going to have to take them down because they are getting so big, I'm worried about them being too heavy.

One week and two days before closing and "Slow Bob" still hasn't gotten the mortgage commitment yet.