If Only Our House Would Sell

(Originally written 2019)

Most people take a year to liquidate their possessions, sell their house, change their domicile residence, register vehicles, create LLC’s, purchase their full-time trailer or motor coach, set up their first, maybe second year of travel, along with dealing with things like change of address, health insurance, and banking. The more I dig, the more I am understanding why it takes the time it does. But that just wouldn’t be the Jen and Buddy way. We have to do things in the unconventional, set our course, understand what we have to do, but do it our way.

In true Jen and Buddy fashion, we started decluttering, staged the house, gave away a crap load of things to our kids, and promised ourselves that know matter what, this remains our dream. That little hint of doubt or bobble is due to the sell of the house. One of the things we promised each other was to not give the house away. This due to the huge renovation we did less than a year and half ago. We have given a small window of leeway that in the end might not be enough to actually sell now, but a year might give us the market to support the dream.

At worse we wait another year and, in the meantime, we keep getting rid of the things in our life that weigh us down, all those things we know as stuff. And geez, do we have a lot of stuff! We have a 12X20 storage already and is filled to the brim not to mention the garage stall we had ceremoniously cleared out and made a big deal about is now full again. I can say without hesitation, ninety percent of this stuff we’re hanging on to for fifteen plus years, things tied to sentimental value, the handcuffing items that we have not been able to let go of. We are starting to figure out that none of the kids want it, my parents are glad to be rid of it, and out of some loyalty to someone else we have resolved to be the keeper of unwanted stuff. I more feel like the patsy holding things that no one wants, but somehow have made us feel guilty for entertaining the shedding of our existence with them.

No more, if it was left up to me, I wouldn’t worry about trying to selling it, I’d call some charity organization and schedule a truck for pickup making sure to tell them to come empty. What they don’t want, I take to them and drop of in their collection bins. I have had some experience with the choosy charity when my mother-in-law passed. We sat and listened to him tell us that they wouldn’t take this or that. I give Jen a lot of credit though, she finally interrupted the guy and told him to leave. He was astounded that she would take control away from him. I think he said something to the affect of not being done loading, to which she replied, and you can unload anything you’ve loaded and get the hell out of here. He changed his tune pretty quick as she then called the charity and told them what had happened. Long story short, they loaded everything we wanted to get rid of and left. Way to go babe! I have no desire to try to make money off anything, it creates value to it and makes it harder to just get rid of it. Anything of real value, I’ll keep in storage somewhere.

I know we’re trying to do the right thing for us, no matter the outcome on the house, we need to unburden. I feel pretty strongly the house will sell either now or next year, and our dream to full-time in a RV, will eventually come true, maybe. Keeping Jen understanding of the dream and not giving up is my challenge. The funny thing is, under my breath, it is really me giving up on the idea of the open road and ties that bind. I feel more secure with the binds!! We have a lot of work to do if it does sell. We have commitments over the next few months that must be obligated. They’ll slow us down a bit which will probably be good in that it will allow us to plan the process out better. No doubt we’ll figure things out, we’ll make things happen, and we’ll accomplish everything we need to do. Timing will come together in our heads and in reality, allowing us to see what needs to be done and in the order, it has to be done in. I probably need to make a checklist of decisions, systematically check them off as we go forward, take a step at a time now that we have plunged in with both feet, if only…this house would sell!