Big changes are coming!

You may or may not have heard but I have decided it is the right time to sell the house.  One day I opened my drapes and was shocked to see the cute neighbors with a for sale sign out front.  I wasn't terribly shocked because they put one out last year but quickly took it down.  But much to my surprise, they asked for a large amount of money for their house...and got it in 4 days!  Richard to the east of me is getting his house on the market too.  There have been a few other houses that have sold on the street in the last 6 months.

So one day I woke up with a huge sense of relief as I sat up in bed and decided the time is right!  There are a few things I need to do before I can list it.  One is a roof.  The other is the concrete on the driveway and the front walk that is completely corroded.  So I got to work getting bids and getting that scheduled.  The roof is coming next weekend and the concrete right after that.  Then I have to turn inside and start cleaning my crap out.  The bottom line is a house with tidy closets and projects done sell quicker and for more money then a house that comes with a built in honey do list.  So I set to cleaning one closet or cabinet a day.  But this weekend, Mom came into town and offered her help so we dove into the basement.

Keep in mind, I don't go to the basement much and when I do, I don't usually do anything in the closets.  In fact, they've all been packed to the gills since I remodeled the basement years ago.  As we dug stuff out, it felt like opening a time capsule from 10 years ago.  It is like everything was put on hold for 10 years.  Paperwork from when my name was Patience.  Photos from Philip as a baby (hand prints and letters too).  And old "dancing day" clothes, keepsakes, garbage.  Lots of garbage.  I went through it with wreckless abandon. 

My plan is to move to a condo.  One that is flat without steps.  And it will be smaller.  As much as 1/3 of the space I currently have.  Hopefully I can afford a condo that is only 1/2 smaller.  But that means basically 1/2 the house has to go.  And I treated my sorting with that in mind.  Going through and keeping what is really important to me but giving myself permission to get rid of the stuff that isn't the most important.  The results are truly amazing.  I am pretty proud of myself.

I thought I would take a few before and after photos.  At this point, I need to pause until after garbage day on Tuesday because it is full to the brim and both mine and Mom's car are full of stuff for charity.  We will take it tomorrow.  Here are a few photos of the grand task at hand.



Closet in the TV room downstairs (don't judge me)

The closet in the TV room downstairs after. 
What a huge improvement.

The furnace room after.  I didn't dare take a before.
But you couldn't walk in the room at all.

This is the charity pile - minus the kitty.

 Next for the clean up is to come back upstairs to finish cleaning closets and cabinets.  I have an all cash buyer interested in previewing my house next week.  If they like it, and they put in a good offer, we won't even have to do a marketing plan.  Regardless, I think it will sell fast and we will be out of here soon.