Condo Maintenance

Lynn has been helping me fix up the condo so I can try to sell it. She succeeded in putting up three sets of mini blinds, no easy task. The instructions were misleading.

She also replaced the screen on the screen door, replaced the closer on that door, tightened the screws on the ceiling fan, fixed a crooked cabinet door, replaced a door knob, plus a bunch of smaller tasks. I didn’t even know she could do all those things.

Here are a few pictures I took on the grounds, which are maintained by landscapers.

Charlie came along and tried to wait patiently.

Another Tough Week Completed

One accomplishment this week was getting my car inspected. Most inspection stations in my town require an appointment, and I was reluctant to make one because I was unsure how I would feel the next day. Fortunately, I found a garage that had availability the same day. My car passed easily, but the tires are starting to show road damage and should be replaced before winter.

Recovering from a fall has been painfully slow, but I am feeling progress. This afternoon, I was able to take Charlie for an abbreviated version of an adventure. We went to Seven Bends State Park and walked to a bench near the river. It was only about 40 feet from our parking spot. Charlie enjoyed watching people go by and they were even two dogs: a slim white dog who was proud, and a big German Shepherd, who was loud. 

Charlie was happy to get outside. We left just as a rain storm was approaching.

In other news, my condo in Edinburg is now vacant. The tenant left it in good shape and turned over the keys yesterday. I need to replace some lightbulbs and decide whether I’m going to rent it back out or sell it. I’m very tempted to sell it because I’m tired of maintaining it. It doesn’t seem to have gone up in value very much though. It’s only a one bedroom unit, and most buyers in this semi-rural area want something bigger. 

I expect that this week will be better for me, at least as far as how my back is feeling. Soon I’ll look back and say that I was lucky that I didn’t break any bones and was able to recover in only a few weeks. 

Near Chantilly

Rajdhani Mandir

This temple was built in 2000 to serve the Hindu, Jain, and Buddhist communities in Northern Virginia. 

I stopped there to take a picture last month when I made a short side trip on my way to Herndon. I had turned off Route 50 to take a look at a community near South Riding. I was curious because the neighborhood was built on a farm once owned by Charles and Becky Poland. I went on many Civil War field trips with them some years back.

When they sold the land in order to move away because Chantilly was choked with traffic, they envisioned that a senior community might be built there due to the fact that the school system was already up to capacity. The developer had other ideas and the housing there is closely packed. I was shocked at how dense it is.

I noticed that streets and a pond were named after members of their family. The farm is gone, and I didn’t recognize anything except for a few turns on the road leading there. I have many fond memories of summer cookouts in their yard at the end of each season of field trips. I took those trips every summer for 20 years. Great people.

One Bedroom, One Bath, Nice Kitchen

My rental property in Edinburg is ready to be leased out. I am very tired from cleaning it and touching up the paint today. This year I am listing it through a realtor. I just don't have the energy to talk to a bunch of people and then go over and wait at the apartment until they show up, or maybe they don’t show. And my dog does not like it when I leave him unless I put him in day care.

 Here’s a close-up of the yellow pansies out front. The irises are just about to bloom. I will show a picture of them from last year.

Garden Affair / Flowers

Skywatch: Contrails Seen from Edinburg.

Last Year at This Time

A year ago today, we had a home inspection on the house that I am now in. At the time, I was not planning to move here. I was planning to move into my townhouse which was vacant, and I was not that impressed with this house. Frank was buying it as an investment but he thought that it was better for me than the townhouse, which had a flight of stairs. And with my weak ankles and backaches, stairs were a problem.

Ultimately I decided to make this house my home. There were details to settle and changes to make, and I did not move in until the end of November. But on home inspection day, there were flowers blooming in the front yard and I took these pictures. The gentleman who previously owned the house was quite a gardener.

Moving is hard, and making a major life change is wrenching. Frank was supportive considering the circumstances. We agreed that we would help each other, which is important considering that we are aging.

Lynn and her friends helped me move. I rented a U-Haul. I didn't write much about it at the time, because it was painful and hard to explain. The funny thing is that I have made major life changes in September before, several times. It almost seems like September is the start of a new year, and not just for school children. 

The last picture shows the current state of the front yard. Flowers are still blooming. I pay a guy to mow the grass. There's still a lot to be done to this house, and I am constantly trying to decide whether the changes I desire are worth the price.

Another Ballpark Mural

Sometimes I come across artwork in unexpected places. In April, I found murals in two different Little League parks. A week ago I showed you one in Keezletown, and here are some paintings at the Stanley ball park.

Aren’t these cute? The second one is at the wall that separates the entrances to the restrooms.

I would not have seen the ballpark if I had not turned around there, which is at the end of a street. It is not a place I have gone before but I was there to look at a house that was for sale. It was not in good condition so I was not tempted to buy it, although I was looking for an investment property to replace the townhouse that I sold. Later that day I found a condo that was in good shape.

There were tax reasons that I was in a hurry to buy a replacement property. I put an offer on the condo and it looks like we are about to go to settlement on it soon. It is in Edinburg and has one bedroom. 

Springtime Hues with Yellows and Blues

Blog Post #7900!

Weekend Reflections / Friday Bliss

It is definitely spring in Virginia. We’ve had rain, we’ve had wind, we’ve had warm sunshine. Flowers are blooming. The earth seems to announce that we have a fresh start.

I’ve been super busy and challenged by deadlines, but when I felt stressed I reminded myself that I have “first world problems.” That is, I live in a position of privilege. I have a roof over my head and food to eat and it’s no use whining about the price of gas or people who let me down. I am fortunate. And look at the beauty around me!

Garden Affair / Floral Friday

Meanwhile, Frank has sold the lake house. He will move into a smaller home with no stairs and a yard that will not require so much labor to maintain.

---

"She turned to the sunlight
And shook her yellow head,
And whispered to her neighbor
‘Winter is dead.’ "
- A.A. Milne

On a more serious note, it was on this day in 1865 that Abe Lincoln died, victim of an assassin's bullet. 

“Fondly do we hope, fervently do we pray, that this mighty scourge of war may speedily pass away.”
- Abe Lincoln

“Goin’ crazy, Wanna Come?”

That's what we used to say when somebody asked, "Where ya' going?" 

I’ve been going and going to because of deadlines this week. Income tax returns and finding property to buy were big challenges. Taxes are done now. And I submitted an offer on a condo today, because today was the deadline for identifying a 1031 exchange property. That’s a tax deferment strategy for people who sell a rental property and buy another one. 

I sold my rental townhouse at the end of February. Finding another property turned out to be even harder than I expected. A house would come on the market one day and be "Pending" the next. That means there was an acceptable offer that was pending an inspection or financing and it happened before I even had a chance to tour the house. I've never seen a market so crazy!

Now it is finally slowing down but just a little. Interest rates have gone up a bit. Still, most of the homes that don't sell right away have a drawback. I tried to drive up to one on a mountain road that turned out to be impassable. I had to back down for a few minutes, very carefully. 

Frank was a real estate broker for 30 years and never saw a market like this. I worked as an agent for a little while and have followed real estate values ever since, and I think an awful lot of homes have sold for more than they are worth. Still, people need to live somewhere!

Although I've been busy, I found time to take a snapshots, like this collapsed house I passed yesterday. It's not for sale, but I couldn't help imagining a listing for this property: "Nice setting but home needs TLC."

Other views were more serene. 

And some were unexpected.

The "Left Aid" sign was on a building next door to a former "Rite Aid" Drugstore.

Today I stopped at a library to send a fax and noticed a cute sign on the book return box. 

Below that we see a barn quilt that is on the wall of a hardware store, and then a dental office with some giant toothbrushes. 

 

Yesterday in Waynesboro

I met Lynn in Waynesboro and we looked at a house because I’m looking for an investment property. Unfortunately, it needed major renovation. However, I found this mural at the Fire Department.

Monday Murals

The house we looked at was next to a nice park.

Lynn doesn't like posing but she agreed to lean on the car and I took some iPhone pictures using Portrait mode. I like this one.

On the way home I stopped briefly at the arboretum in Harrisonburg and took a few pictures by the parking lot.

Mosaic Monday / Blue Monday

Updates and Repeats

Woodstock, Virginia

I've shown my investment townhouse before. Usually I'm trying to rent it out, and I always found good tenants. Now I'm trying to sell it. The market has been strong but it gets quieter in the winter, so I may have lost the optimal period for selling while I was busy figuring out where I wanted to move.  Life is complicated. 

The house is on Hisey Avenue. the view from upstairs is of Fort Valley Nursery with the Massanutten Range in the distance. It has two huge bedrooms, 2 1/2 baths, and is listed at $229,900. The location is fantastic! 

Meanwhile, Covid continues to rage. The Omicron variant is less deadly than Delta, but still it is filling the hospitals with seriously ill sufferers.  I blame the people who refuse to wear masks or even social distance or get vaccinated. This pandemic should be over by now! I have switched from cloth masks to more effective KN94's and KN95's and stopped eating in restaurants again.

Yesterday was warm enough that I got the car washed. I also drove down Lupton Road to the state park.

As you can see in the view of Edinburg Gap, much of the snow is gone, although it persists on the mountains. Another snow storm is predicted for Sunday.

I had an appointment in Winchester on Tuesday so I swung by the animal hospital to see their sign, which often says something clever.