Day 8: A silent killer
Inspections officially completed today with the radon test results. The levels turned out to be satisfactory. Ugh. I’ve learned a lot in this home-buying process, but this is one thing that merits blissful ignorance. Despite the satisfactoy label, it turns out no level is really safe. And it’s everywhere. Radon is the second leading cause of lung cancer; it is a silent, inescapable killer.
Alright, well blissful ignorance isn’t quite accurate, but if I had the option to know the culprit of my demise, I’d choose oblivion. Say I were to be squashed by a chair falling from the sky. I’d spend every anxiety-ridden moment with my eyes to the sky, tripping over what’s in front of me instead of enjoying the moment. No thanks. Which is why I’m not even going to bother testing my current house since I’m moving on soon.
Until this weekend, I knew nothing about radon. According to my inspector, one in three homes in the Grandville area have toxic levels. One in 20 homes in Alger Heights record toxic levels. Today I learned that it’s everywhere, but your home is the most dangerous place. Back to that blissful ignorance thing… Now I’m going to be worried that lung cancer is the ticking time bomb for my family in Grandville.
On the other hand, while radon is everywhere, there are several measures you can take to decrease your home’s levels. So ignorance really isn’t bliss. Test kits are cheap. Do yourself a favor. Check your radon levels and lower your risk for lung cancer!
Day 7: A cabinetry redesign
One of my main requirements during the house hunt was a decent amount of counter space. That among a few others went right out the window once I found this house.
I also didn’t want to sink a bunch of time and money into renovations, just in case the economy doesn’t pick back up in the next five or so years. Aside from a paint job and a few other minimal items, I’m quite satisfied with the house as-is.
Satisfied, that is, until last week, when I realized there’s no dishwasher. After momentary panic, “What else did I overlook?” my brain started restructuring. Luckily, there’s space to grow.
I’ll rip out cabinets, slide in a dishwasher, add a few cabinets and a butcher block, and voila! More counter space and cabinets and no more hand washing! My only home-centered thought today was a sketch of ideas past midnight and a conversation with my dad on possibilities.
I’m actually glad I had that minor oversight. I could live without a dishwasher or additional counter space, but building something new is really quite exciting. Can’t wait to learn a little about woodworking from my dad!
I thought this was cool before bed. When I woke up, I decided it was a bit impractical for what I’m trying to achieve.
This countertop will be used somehow...
Day 6: The meaning of ‘growing up’
The mid twenties is prime time for first-time homeowners. Which means I’ve become quite accustomed to being turned down for a night on the town because a friend had to save money, paint the living room, put in new flooring or was just plain exhausted from hours of yard work. So this is ‘growing up’, I’d think as I sat at home alone, bored, longing for carefree days of college. Yup, growing up means losing friends to homes, husbands and kids. And, of course, responsibility tends to suck in every single friend on the exact same night when I happen to be kid free. I’ll admit, the rejection left sort of a sour taste in my mouth about owning a home.
While I still have 33 days before I actually move in, I’m already finding ways to save a few bucks, scouring interior design magazines and sinking money into expensive necessities. Turns out it’s not so sour once it’s your own responsibility. 🙂
I decided to save a little money on Christmas this year. Instead of buying a $35 Christmas tree (and having to pack up an extra couple boxes), Calin and I set up the mini tree Santa left in his bedroom last year. We covered an end table with the tree skirt, hung two boxes of ornaments and a placed a few knick-knacks around the tree. It’ll be quick and easy to pack up after Christmas!
- Look closely and you’ll see a dinosaur. Look even more closely and you’ll notice the dino and snowman are facing the tree instead of out toward the living room. Calin’s arrangement, my favorite part!
Thanks to Pinterest, I was inspired to make a few gifts this year, too, which saves a bit of money and consumed my evening. Trying to pinch pennies constantly is rather exhausting though. On my quest for appliances, I was ready to give up, convincing myself that good deals would be just as good in a few weeks as this weekend’s Thanksgiving specials. But after my trip to Hobby Lobby, I stopped at Lowe’s anyway. Good thing I did because I found an awesome deal on a Whirlpool range. Salesmen are so much more helpful than the Internet sometimes.
One more thing checked off my to-do list
The next exciting item on my grown-up to-do list? Find a great bargain on a washer and dryer! (Definitely another sign of growing up. Five years ago such a statement would have been dripping with sarcasm.)
Day 5: A first time for everything
I keep worrying that the thrill of a new home will wear off and I’ll regret buying this house. I had inspections today so I figured at least I’ll have an out without losing my $1,000 earnest deposit.
But as I wandered the house for three hours discovering its imperfections, I realized I
loved it more with every step. What a relief.
Branden from Buyers Home Inspections was great – informative, thorough, friendly. He even got my dad’s approval. Aside from a few issues, the inspection went well.
In the process, my brain was crammed with new bits of information. I’ve never given much thought to furnaces, but was surprised to learn that flames are ignited to heat the house. That was my favorite detail.
I learned a lot today. My decision to buy this house was 100 percent affirmed for the first time. But there’s one more first. I stood in the same room with both of my biological parents for the first time in more than 20 years today.
Day 4: Appliance shopping
My new house came just in time to score a few good deals this Black Friday. So I scoured ads, Craigslist and ebay. I found a few other things, too, so I’m hitting the stores at midnight. This works much better with my internal clock than the early bird specials.
Day 3: Lowering the bar
My last Project 365 gradually grew from caption to paragraph to short story. An hour, sometimes two, would fly by each evening while the words poured from my fingertips. Meanwhile, I neglected things, like tidying up, ironing or making my lunch for the next day. I’ve noticed over the past month I’ve been more well rested, too, since I go to bed instead of write (sometimes). What was I thinking starting another Project 365 at the onset of being a homeowner? From what I hear, things are bound to get busier. Apparently, there’s always something to do with a house.
Some might say “Messy bed, messy head.” But Albert Einstein says “If a cluttered desk signs a cluttered mind, of what, then, does an empty desk sign?” He was the genius, right? I’ll put up with a little clutter just so long as I enjoy life. I love to write and this type of project challenges me to think creatively every day. Besides, there’s that other saying, “You only live once.”
Anyway, there I go rambling again. My goal was to let you know in a sentence or two that I’m going to try to keep majority of this Project 365 short and sweet, essentially lowering any bar set with the last one. Looks like I failed that one already.
On another note, I did manage to successfully accomplish a few things today, two of which were buyer-related. For one, I made a few calls to compare rates on inspections. And two, I finally settled on a mortgage lender. It boggles me to hear people say they didn’t do any comparisons from one lender to the next. After a week of comparing several options, I found fees to be significantly different from one place to the next, including interest rate variations by as much as half percent. Short term, I’m saving a couple hundred in out-of-pocket expenses that I can put toward purchases for my new home. And long term, I’m saving tens of thousands of dollars just by doing a little homework. Anyway, after staring at complicated sheets like these, I’m relieved to have this decision made. It was a close call between Bob Hein with Priority Mortgage and Jonathan Arnold at Arbor Mortgage, but Jonathan’s zeal, patience, commitment to customer satisfaction and ability to get me the best deal won me over.
Only 37 more days and a few more steps ’til I get to move in to my new place! I hope it flies by as fast as my hour of writing does. So much for that headline…
Day 2: Determined to save some bees
When visiting London, I frequently asked my friend, Colin, to translate the British slang. I was quite thrown off when his mom asked, “Fancy a fag?” A moment later she revealed a pack of cigarettes. Later his 10-year-old sister pointed to the minger outside their flat. “What’s a minga?” I asked. She giggled as Colin explained the boy was an ugly, irritating bloke. Over a pint, I met his brother, who exposed me to rhyming slang in his thick Cockney dialect. “Can you slow down?” “Can you spell that?” “You fell down the apple-and-pears? Come again?” Quite the charming house guest I was.
Thanks to the variety of loan officers I’ve spoken to about my mortgage, I feel like I’m back in London again. I practically need a translator to decipher the gobbledygook. Unfortunately, the several hundred quid I’m parting with isn’t for airfare, a tour guide or a week-long pass for The Tube.
Needless to say, my head is spinning as I strive to find the best deal and save some bees (and honey). That’d be money.
Have some fun: Cockney rhyming slang translator
Or learn the language: West Michigan Mortgage Help Glossary, Arbor Mortgage FAQs
Day 1: Single and ready to mingle…
…with realtors, mortgage lenders, inspectors and Lowe’s cashiers. And if I really work it, I hope to be sleeping in a new bedroom by the first week of January. 😉
Maybe 2012 will bring the men, but for now I have more than enough to keep me busy with this thing called homeownership.
Last week I put an offer in on a home. When I got the notification of the sellers’ acceptance, my life flashed before my eyes: no international vacations or weekend getaways, the return to my frugal college mindset (minus the beer choices), no more expensive dinners at Grove, and the most dreaded of all, coupon clipping.
Fortunately, it was a quick flash. Then I started thinking about how I’d put my newly purchased range to good use by cooking for friends while enjoying an $8 bottle of wine purchased on sale instead of an $8 glass of wine. It struck me, too, one of my new neighbors happens to be a chef at Grove. Perhaps he and his wife – my friend Shana – will want to swing by to use that new range, too. And once summer comes, I’m going to live on that amazing deck out back. And I’ll be so busy painting and repurposing furniture that I won’t even miss The Winchester or Hopcat. And of course, the investment bit is a good thing.
It seemed logical to unfold one of life’s biggest milestones, one rooted in Grand Rapids, as a new Project 365. Over the next year, I’ll ‘unfold the story’ of being a first-time, single-mom homeowner. Wish me luck!
Everything I know I learned from someone else
I’ve been single for nearly two years. I was miserable for nearly half of the year I dated my last boyfriend. But I like to look back on every person encountered as an experience that’s shaped the person I am. One of my favorite quotes is by Chuck Palahniuk: “Nothing of me is original. I am the combined effort of everybody I’ve ever know.”
I’m a memory lover. An old soul, perhaps. I dwell in the past. The glass-half-full past, that is. There are a lot of people who’ve made me angry, miserable, sad. But you pull through and realize a little piece of them is ingrained in everything you do. Whether that’s from an intrinsic vow to never say certain words, treat others a certain way, or hopefully, from a more positive perspective, an aspiration to be a better person. Sometimes it’s as simple as cultivating a new interest.
Growing up, dining out was reserved for birthdays and other very special occasions. With a family of seven, Applebee’s was fine dining to me. My ex, however, opened me up to the world of finer dining. This, of course, is not always a good thing since it’s a huge strain on my wallet.
I was hesitant to visit Grove, the new East Hills restaurant on Cherry Street tonight after seeing the menu prices online. But, wow, every single bite was indescribably delicious. Some might call me a foodie, but technically, I have no idea how to describe the delectable delight in every single bite. Simply put, it was some of the best food that’s ever touched my tastebuds. We ate Ninth Bridge bread. The orange blossom and honey butter had a savory sweetness to it. The oil and a beet spread was different, but yum. The empanada appetizer was incredible. And not deep fried. The entrée my friend and I split, gnocchi soaked in some sort of pumpkin sauce, was heaven in my mouth. I’m not a huge dessert person but the Two Way Chocolate was great! And the macchiato martini? Amazing. And the service was excellent.
So, thank you, ex boyfriend, for introducing me to the finer things in life. Who knows? If it weren’t for you, I might still consider The Outback Steakhouse a classy meal.
MyGR6 Final 6
I could feel it in my bones this morning. I figured the announcement would be made early on. As I got ready for work, there were no texts, no emails, no Facebook messages, no congratulatory Tweets. Just before I left for work, I realized my BlackBerry didn’t show any new gmails, but my Droid did. For an instant I had a glimmer of hope. So I let it linger, waiting 20 minutes until I reached my cubicle before restarting my phone. Still, nothing. I finally went to MyGR6.com, silently hoping the winners hadn’t yet been announced. But they were, and I didn’t see my name in the top six spots. Bummer!
The excitement of the contest, however, was quite fun for a few weeks. To tell you the truth, I didn’t care much about th $10,000 in prizes. I started this blog and was hoping that it’d be a way to further expose my writing. After all, my life goal is to write a novel. Winner or not, my six words provided me a perfect blog title. So thanks, Grand Rapids Press and Amway for putting on the contest. Congratulations to the winners!
Unfolding the Story of My Life 