Don't Talk About...

Argh. I'm dying to talk about Improv Fight Club. Not about what other people did, just my habitual navel-gazing. The summary of what I would say is this: I'm really glad I went.

And now, for things that have nothing to do with improv:

We've sold our old house! Hans has just left to sign the contract (my name wasn't on the title), and closing is scheduled for June 2. We took less than the county valuation, about 9% less, and 16% under the price at which we'd have probably listed it, had it gotten that far. Even so, we came out ahead. See, we were still painting and fixing things up so that it would be cute enough for our agent's standards, when we were approached by the landlord of the duplex next door. He's a decent guy, only has two or three houses, and tries to do a good job. We haven't known his tenants to have major complaints. He seems to have the intention of not becoming a slumlord. And he wanted the house as-is, saving us some $6K in applied cuteness, and a similar figure in agent commission. Luckily, we hadn't signed a contract with her yet to sell it.

I had hoped, in my liberal do-gooderness, to see it bought by a family who would live there and get a good start as homeowners. In fact, we made it available in March to a local organization that facilitates just such a transaction. But there's a point at which one must think of one's own needs, like not paying two mortgages every month while waiting for a buyer during a bad economy. And it's a little small for a family, unless said family moved from someplace crowded like New York or Tokyo, where 980 square feet is a palatial spread. A couple friends of mine, both single, were considering buying houses, and it would have been a good fit for either of them, but they both decided it wasn't the right time in their lives after all. No hard feelings there - I'm grateful for the delay their interest created. If we had placed it on the general market early, we could have been stuck for a long time. And honestly... I miss shopping.

So, remember where I mentioned that I'm easily distracted? At my therapist's suggestion, finally taken last week when we had a phone appointment because I forgot to go to Lawrence for my scheduled office appointment, I'm trying an ADD med. There's a chance it will not agree with my antidepressant. I apologize in advance if anything goes wrong. If all goes well over the month or so that it takes to build up to a therapeutic dosage, I expect to become über-efficient, and take over the world by the end of the year.

I'll spend today with Grandma Judy, like I usually do on Tuesdays and Fridays. This is a topic with an upcoming blog (at least one) all to itself: aging, mild-to-moderate Alzheimer's, not finding the right placement level in a retirement home, family dynamics... oy vey. I love her, and I can't begin to say how rewarding it is to spend time with her, but at the same time I'm glad I get to go to Hype 7 rehearsal at the end of the day.

Oh, and I got another tattoo. Photo coming soon!

Well, look what the cat dragged in!

Guess who hasn't bothered to post her most intimate thoughts to the interwebs in over a month? My goodness, someone should be ashamed of herself!

I've moved to a considerably smaller town than any of my previous residences. Though it is minutes away, the separation is evident. I have a feeling I will be "other" here. I've already been asked once by a complete stranger if I've found a church yet, and the quilting shop is a front for missionaries. People are nice, nonetheless.

I've moved to a somewhat bigger house, with an enormous yard. I can play out there for hours, planting stuff and pulling dead growth and sketching trees and throwing sticks for the dogs. They never bring the sticks back, but they like the chasing part. Inside, there are actually spaces available to dedicate to specific hobbies. No more of of that sewing-machine-in-the-bedroom, circular-saw-in-the-kitchen crap. And somehow, and this is the best part, it's been really easy to keep it clean so far. I mean, I can generate a lot of clutter in a month - but the house isn't junked up yet. I've even been doing real cleaning, like with sprays and rags and mops. What the...? I used to hate cleaning!

The improv troupe had a show tonight, a little on the off side overall. Weird energy, quiet audience, everyone with some recent major thing like moving or work shakeups, rehearsals missed, members lost... but in a low-key show like this one, some amazing moments can be created, and some lessons can be learned. On which I do not feel like elaborating right now, but I probably will soon. Anyway, the show goes on.

Oh, and I love cooking on a gas stove. Fire good.