Offer pending!
One of the funniest bits from an Academy Award presentation was courtesy of Jim Carey, who called the statuette "the Lord of all knick knacks." Then you have George Carlin's bit on houses as just places to put your stuff.
Well, that's how I'm viewing our current obsession: the purchase of a vacation/weekend/summer place, a knick knack we can visit and and a new place to put our stuff.
The story for me goes back a ways, when on a trip to Adult Nationals, the girls and I designed the West Michigan Adult Skater "WMAS Compound." In addition to a customized ice rink with voice activated music system, fully stocked snack bar, luxury locker room, Chihuly glass sculpture at center ice, and rec room with theater seating to watch Nationals, Olympics, and Worlds, we would have guest apartments or cottages on grounds for judges and skating friends who would be visiting for private ice time, a competition, or test session.
So I start to collect cottages on Pinterest. And you know how the mind wanders when you are falling asleep, you start to think about cozy couches, notion baskets, warm blankets, board games and such to outfit your little dream cottage.
The Great Room.
Fast forward to freaking COVID, and the world shuts down. I don't go anywhere or skate for months. All I do is work, get Will through virtual school, sew masks, and attempt to bake cookies until Dave tells me to stop. We need a vacation, and need one bad.
We head to the UP and it is glorious. It was exactly what we needed, and my little cottage dreams start making more noise in my head.
Muskegon River landing.
So one weekend we have to go up north to deliver some things to the groomer barn in Baldwin. It's hot and we start telling Will tales of fun weekends up at his grandparents' cottage swimming, boating, and fishing. We aren't far, so it's the perfect opportunity to go run around Nichols Lake. We hit the public access beach for a quick dip; luckily I was wearing the equivalent of a bikini with my choice of bra and panty that day, behold the power of lycra! I can say I wore a bikini at age 50!
This then leads to us cruising the area, looking at cottages. And there's one for sale! But the owner is elusive in her willingness to entertain selling to us. This starts an immediate obsession in Dave to start looking at properties. And then we find it: the little house on the river.
Little House on the River
We go see it. We go back two days later, this time with Will. We call friends and realtors for advice. We go back to tour the place and write a check that day, making an offer. It is accepted.
We are still in the throes of inspections and negotiations. I'm hoping I don't have to delete or amend this post to say the deal went sour. I hope the next step in this blog is to chronicle the process of making this place, as Dave's friend Lois says, our "forever home," the place where we retire in the future. The place where Will and the kids come to hang out. The place where I serve a cozy Christmas meal this December. It sure looks bright and sunny in photos on a gloomy day.
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