RamblingNana's Blog
RamblingNana's Blog
Last Post 10 days, 9 hours Ago
Jul 13, 2008 | 7:05 PM PST
So, off we went to see how our new abode is coming along and subject ourselves to a little more mental torture.
When we arrived at the site the real estate gal told us there was a suite the same as ours, on the top floor of the building next to us for sale. She said we could go in and take a look at it. Off we went - very excited at the prospect of actually seeing what our place would look like, only a different colour scheme, the reverse plan, and 14' ceilings in the living room. Ours are all 9'.
Wow!!! The place is gorgeous. The view is lovely. It seems huge ... it's empty, so that's probably why. The folks who bought it bought it on spec with the idea of flipping it and turning a tidy profit. Little did any of us know the market would go into a nose dive just in time for us to put the homes we are presently living in up for sale. I feel for them ... but not nearly as much as I feel for us! Can you imagine if we'd sold when we should have sold? Yes, we'd have made a very good deal on this place ... but we'd be homeless and renting somewhere now!
We could see in the windows of our suite next door and one floor down. The crown moldings are up in the living room and dining room. They aren't painted yet. Other than that - it still doesn't look like a place anyone is going to live in for a very long time.
On our way out we spoke to a painter. He knew which suite was ours. When we asked him when he figured it would be ready for occupancy he started counting on his fingers and said, "mmm, October . . . November . . . definitely before Christmas."
OMG!!! BEFORE CHRISTMAS ARE YOU KIDDING?!!!
With that we returned to speak with the sales rep who confirmed that it will be October ... at least she says that is what they are being told by those at the top.
Can you believe it?!!! We bought this place A YEAR AGO LAST NOVEMBER!!!
Yes we ARE very depressed.
Apparently other buyers have had to put all their stuff in storage and rent houses or hotels or bed and breakfasts ... or if they are retired, just do some extended travelling ... and wait!
So much for moving at the end of the Summer! We are going to be like homeless gypsies - wandering the earth - looking for a place to lie down.
Silly I know - but with the market the way it is - we may be kicking ourselves around the block in a few months, wishing we'd accepted that first offer! Oh well, there's another potential buyer coming to look at it tomorrow. I have my fingers and toes crossed.
I have to change my attitude. I have to rise above all this, golf more, think positively and just be thankful that I don't have any REAL worries.
Cheers!
RN
Jul 13, 2008 | 12:22 PM PST
Tags: hanging baskets , fertilizing , watering
Minter Gardens are famous out here on the west coast of British Columbia. I just spotted this excellent article by Brian Minter regarding the care of hanging baskets. If you love hanging baskets as much as I do, I think you will find it worth a read.
Jul 11, 2008 | 10:55 PM PST
Tags: condo , moving , selling , real estate , market
Well, we would appear to have survived the first week of having our apartment on the market. I think I've aged at least 10 years in the process . . . at least my face certainly looks 10 years older. Can you say "haggard?" OMG!!! Talk about stress! What a production this is! I don't ever recall moving (or attempting to move as the case may be) being such a trial. I'm too darned old to move. I've got roots here for Pete's sake! I'm settled. I need to sit quietly by the window and just watch the world go by . . . maybe rock back and forth a little.Our real estate agent tells us to make sure the apartment is absolutely perfect. It is totally staged. We've put a ton of "stuff" in storage so that it's de-cluttered. Actually it looks very nice. I couldn't even tell you what I'm missing. I may be hitting Craig's list with a vengeance once we get moved. I'll try to sell off some of my treasures. That will thrill my husband. I just hope my Mother isn't watching.
We get sudden phone calls that announce "someone" is coming for a viewing in 30 minutes and can we be ready to clear out and go hide during this process. We've had 9 viewers. We've spent a lot of time sitting in our underground parking lot . . . waiting.
I can't believe the cleaning I'm doing. It never stops! I don't want to cook or bake because my stove and oven will get messy. I don't want to eat because I'll mess up the counters and the sink. I don't want to comb my hair because I'll leave hair somewhere for sure. I get up at the crack of dawn so that my bed looks like no one has ever slept in it. We never stop Swiffering and washing floors and vacuuming carpets. I dust and polish incessantly. There is absolutely nothing out of place. We even hide the laundry and our golf clubs in a janitorial cupboard down the hall. We don't want anyone to think we have any dirty clothes. Actually I'm thinking I may look into buying some disposable underwear (hee hee).
We are getting very positive comments on our place. We had our first negative comment yesterday from a really sweet couple who I think really suited this place. The condo was "perfect." Unfortunately our balcony was too small. They were coming from a big house and ... they were right. It would be too small for them to enjoy sitting out.
Unfortunately the market here has been affected by the real estate shmozzle in the US. It shouldn't be, but fact is, it is. We got our first offer today: $25,000.00 lower than our asking price . . . and our asking price is right in line with what it should be. Our price is what other condos in our building have gone for in the past year. I was choked! We were so disappointed. All I could think of was: How DARE she insult me with such a low-ball offer? How DARE she?!!! If she can't afford to pay the advertised price she should go condo shopping somewhere else! Grrrrr.
Whew! Got that off my chest. Obviously I'd make a lousy real estate agent.
So, that was the end of that offer. Now we start all over again. It's awful. There is so much product on the market right now. People just aren't buying like they were a few months ago. Of course if our new place had been completed when it was supposed to be completed, we would have sold our place in the blink of an eye . . . months ago!
Still no word as to when we can move into the new place. They wont tell us anything other than "the end of Summer." That may be a blessing in disguise if this place doesn't sell.
And the saga continues . . .
Jun 20, 2008 | 11:47 PM PST
Well it's done! The For Sale sign will be up this coming week . . . and then all we have to do is wait . . . and hope that someone falls in love with our condo and wants to buy it.
Just ask me how stressed I am. This moving thing just isn't as easy as it was when I was younger. I guess we just have too much "stuff" now. It just seems soooo complicated.
The video guy will be coming on Monday to take video of the place. Husband is going to transport all the zillions of boxes I've packed full of superfluous "stuff" and all the extra furniture that clutters the place up, down to a storage unit till the place is sold. It's looking awfully bare around here. I miss my "stuff."
Anyhow, the real estate market is really poor all of a sudden. It was fantastic when we bought our new place, a year ago last November. Now apparently people just aren't buying.
Just what we wanted to hear. NOT!!! We have our fingers and toes crossed that we will get close to what we hoped to get for this place. Ever since the US real estate market got into such a mess, the market here has become jittery. The media always blathers on . . . and on and gets everyone all worked up and nervous.
I bought a bunch of pretty flowers today to put on the deck to dress it up a little. Looks a bit nicer now. My poor baskets are struggling to look nice. We've had so little sun that they haven't really had much of a chance so far this year. Hope the sun comes out soon.
May 11, 2008 | 9:54 PM PST
Today was a red letter day for me. Husband and I went over to check out the progress (or lack of) of our new condo. As you've no doubt heard, I'm getting pretty discouraged and downright negative about the whole moving idea. Well, let me tell you: I have a whole different attitude as we speak. I muscled my way into OUR SUITE!
We walked down to our building, following in the footsteps of the security guard. When we hit our driveway I split and ran down into the underground parking lot. There were three workmen standing there, about to go home for the day. I promised them my first born if they would PLEEEEZ let me sneak up and take a look at my future home that I had never seen ... PLEEEEZ, PLEEEZ, PLEEEZ!!!
"No."
I groveled some more.
"No."
So, I groveled some more.
Finally I beat them into submission and they buckled. They pointed to a door and said, "Close it when you come out."
I didn't have to be told twice. I ran up those stairs and into our GORGEOUS new home! The view that hit me almost made my heart stop. It is absolute fabulous. I started clicking pictures as fast as I could, thinking I'd be tossed out on my ear in a matter of seconds. Wouldn't you just know it - my batteries died! Bummer! I couldn't take my eyes off the view from the living room windows. I could see the most fantastic view of our new front yard ... the golf course ... all the golfers and carts going by. It was awesome! Just to the left of our suite is the prettiest rockery garden with a waterfall. We will have this wonderful back yard that we don't have to pull weeds out of or cut the lawn. It could not be more perfect.
Our balcony is a nice size. It's going to be wonderful to sit out there in the Summer. Next Summer. Forget this Summer I'm afraid.
The rooms all appear to be a good size. As you can see, it's pretty much of a mess. It's just a skeleton still ... but I got a "feel" for it and that's all I needed. I'm back on track again and terribly excited now.
I just wanted to share my excitement.
RN
P.S. No, husband did not get to see the suite. By the time he realized I'd managed to con my way inside - the door had locked behind me and he couldn't get in. Oh dear. When I went down to look for him the door locked behind me and that was the end of that. We tried harassing the security guard into letting us go back in but she wasn't buying. Desperate times call for desperate measures. I considered choking her out and tossing her in the dumpster, but decided to let her go ... this time.
Here's what I saw when I walked into my new home! That will be the view looking out of our livingroom window toward the golf course. This shows just a tiny bit of the deck. It actually runs past the family room, guest bedroom and our room. It's going to be fun to decorate with pots of shade loving things.
Here's the dining room, looking from the living room.
Apr 29, 2008 | 4:22 PM PST
Tags: hanging baskets , weeds , chickweed , balcony
So, I've taken up walking . . . serious walking . . . really fast walking! I'm doing about four miles every other day. So far so good. I'm gonna get rid of some of this weight . . . I hope.
While on my seriously fast walk the other day I spotted hanging baskets all lined up in front of one of the local corner grocery stores. They were so lush looking. I was drawn in like a moth to flame. I simply could not just walk by. So I bought three of them. We drove down and picked them up that evening.
I can't believe I did something so dumb ! We are expecting snow here this week! It's sunny right now . . . but I can see the weather is changing.
I've got the baskets tucked up close to the wall on my balcony in hopes they will stay warm. The first night I must have draped forty feet of clear plastic over them to keep the cold off. It all blew away the next day.
Anyhoo . . . it's been almost a week. So far they are looking just fine. The chances of them surviving without defect till the warm weather arrives is probably zero . . . but . . . oh well, I may just have to buy new ones.
I did something nice for someone on Sunday. My friend has been off in Spain for a month. She is coming home tomorrow with relatives from Denmark in tow. She was fretting over the fact that her HUGE garden would be full of weeds when she got home. I told her I'd happily weed it for her in preparation for their arrival. OMG! Back and front was a green pasture of chickweed. At least I think it was chickweed. Whatever it was it has totally altered the alignment of my back and introduced me to leg muscles I didn't know I owned. I don't know why I felt I must do both front and back gardens in one day. Oh well. It's done and it looks all nice and brown and fluffy ... instead of like a green carpet.
I'm not griping about my lack of a garden any more. I think I will be content with my balcony from here on in.
RN
Apr 13, 2008 | 12:30 AM PST
Hello.
I just wanted to pop by and tell you how green with envy I am to hear all of you talking about your plants bursting through the warm soil. The only thing bursting around here is my belly! I have GOT to go on a diet. We are continuing on with our lousy weather ... except for the occasional day of brilliant sunshine like today. It was so wonderful to get outside and go for a walk in the sun. We have had such a long, dreary Winter. It is downright depressing.
Anyhoo, I just wanted to say "hi" and get a little sympathy.
Feb 13, 2008 | 11:29 PM PST
Tags: condo , condo new construction
Got the "official" letter from our builder today. Because of the delays as a result of bad weather conditions and/or lack of available skilled tradespeople, occupation of our new place is delayed until late Summer 2008 blah, blah, blah, blah.
I shouldn't complain. I feel like I'm waiting for a bus - you know how you keep stepping off the curb and peering down the road to see if it's coming yet. ;-)
Speaking of feeling un-settled. My son sold his place last Friday. He is very pleased - but feeling sad to think of moving after putting his heart and soul (and back) into building their home and improving the land. They still don't seem to know what they are going to do. The new owner is letting them stay on the property for the Summer. They are really looking forward to enjoying the land and the garden after working so hard on getting it the way they want it. Me too!
Winter seems very long this year. I just realized I've got another three full months before I can even think about starting my flowers on the balcony. How I envy those of you who live where it's warm all the time and you are always surrounded by flowers. Lucky!
I'm going to have to find another forum to vent on - I've no flowers to talk about!
Well, enough complaining for one night. I'm going to go curl up with my book.
Cheers!
Jan 18, 2008 | 3:00 PM PST
Tags: baby , balcony , cruising , baskets , moving
Hi there!
Thought it was about time I popped by and said "hello!" Wish I had some fascinating garden news to share, but, alas, there's nothing outside my window but grey, grey, grey! Logic tells me there is still a sun residing up there above the grey - but you coudn't prove it by me. We've had such a depressing Winter. Tons of rain and rarely a glimpse of sunshine. It's getting everyone down.
We had a fantastic 36 day trip, starting in Rome (without any luggage for three days!!!) and then cruising the Mediterranean, crossing the Atlantic and cruising the Caribbean until October 28th.
I can't believe our trips have come and gone. It was over in the blink of an eye. I have to look at our photos to remind myself of all the wonderful ports we went to and the fun we had. 2007 was truly an exciting year for us, starting with our cruise to the Panama in April/May. Hey, if you want to see photos of our adventures ... just ask me, I've got lots! :-)
The last time I wrote I think I told you my youngest son and his family had put their 20 acres on the market and were about to pack up and move waaaaay up country. Well, that plan has come and gone (thank goodness). The house and land is still up for sale, but the plan to re-locate appears to be on the back burner. I think there's still discussion going on that involves moving farther North and building another house. We shall see. So far they haven't found a buyer, but that's not surprising. Spring will likely bring more interest in large land purchases in the area.
I put together a collage of the two babies at the same stage of development. We were all surprised how similar they were. The "new" one is the one on the bottom.
Well, our new condo is STILL not ready. We bought it a year ago last November and it doesn't look like we are going to be moving until the Summer of 08. Can you believe it? Delay, delay, delay. We are so disappointed. I even got my husband to bring home a bunch of boxes the other day so that I could start packing up "stuff" I want to put in storage when we put this place on the market - thinking that would be February! Ha!!! Not likely!!! Now we are surrounded by boxes!
So, I guess I'm going to be hanging up my baskets on this little balcony here again this Spring. Oh well, it will make the place look prettier when the "for sale" sign goes up.
So, bye for now.
Cheers,
RN
Sep 18, 2007 | 1:21 PM PST
Tags: travel , fly , plane
We're off!!!
Bye for now! When you read this we will be high in the sky somewhere, flying toward Rome.
We are off on our BIG adventure. We wont be back for 36 days. We are so excited. We are going to places we have never been. We will see Turkey, France, Spain, Italy, Greece, Portugal, Monaco, Croatia, Netherlands Antilles, Grand Turks and Caicos Islands, British Virgin Islands and the Bahamas.
Can you imagine how excited we are?!! What an adventure it is going to be.
We know we want to go somewhere and actually stay there for awhile and really visit the area. This cruise will give us just a taste of what these faraway places are like and we will undoubtedly find a spot that we will want to return to one day and spend some time getting to know the area in detail.
We've taken quite a few cruises and we always enjoy them immensely. One of our favourites is Alaska. That is a marvellous cruise and we highly recommend it for you and your families.
We did the Panama Canal in April this year. It was 19 days and we loved it. It was over in the blink of an eye.
I learned so much on that trip. Before I left I read "The Path Between the Seas: The Creation of the Panama Canal, 1870-1914" by David McCullough. It is a fabulous book that was suggested to me as a "must read" and I encourage you to read it before you take this cruise, should you ever have the opportunity to go there. It will truly enhance your adventure. What a fascinating story of construction that was. I had no idea what a saga it had been.
So bye for now. Your gardens will all be tucked away for the Winter by the time we return. My baskets will be all sad looking and messy. My friend is staying here and because the baskets are still so lovely looking - well - I haven't the heart to take them down. Hopefully she will remember to water them every so often ... though I know she's never watered a plant in her life! ;-)
You'll recognize me when I return. I'll be the little round lady who waddles off the ship. Oh the FOOD!!!! It's soooooo good!
Later!
RN
Sep 15, 2007 | 10:20 PM PST
Tags: view , lake , boat , boats , country , moving , move
My son made the announcement tonight that he is putting his home and 20 acres on the market and they are moving up country.
I almost fainted.
What about my grandbabies??!!
They have apparently discussed it and they have decided they want to move up to an area in BC that is on a lake and about four hours from here. They are concerned about the quality of life their children will have in the area they are now living in, and they feel there is less crime and greater opportunity for the kind of lifestyle they want to have, further inland. They are both keen on the outdoors. They have boats and they will be able to use them up there.
I've vacationed in the area they are hoping to move to and it really is very lovely - at least in the Summer. I'm not so sure about the Winter.
So much for my Nana role huh? So much for my gardener's paradise. Whatever will I do?
Both of us Nanas are down here on the coast. Apparently we are the only reason that they feel bad about this plan. Both of us will be very sad to not be able to drive for 30 minutes and see our grandbabies. Sad. Sad. Sad.- ;-(
Whose garden will I weed? How will I show my face on GG? I'll have nothing to talk about! I'll have to find a new forum where I can talk about ... I dunno ... vacuuming or dusting or the weather. :-(
No more playing in the garden with my little pal. :-(
All those treasured moments - finished.;-(
I think I'm gonna cry!
Oh well, they are young and they should spread their wings and do what makes them happy. I did. I'm sure we will go back and forth ... and we'll have that lovely new guest room in our new place and they will come to visit. My d.i.l. says she is going to insist that their new home has a full suite in the basement so that us Nanas can come to visit for a week or so, and feel that they can have a little privacy if we want it.
They seem pretty excited about this idea. I hope their place sells fast. It's pretty gloomy out there when Winter sets in. It's much more appealing when the sun is shining and the flowers are in bloom. What a lovely piece of farmland it is. Sniffle.
This is just a tiny view out back.
Sep 13, 2007 | 5:14 PM PST
Tags: weather , Black Prince Tomato , tomatoes , miniature tomatoes , tomato blossoms
It's happened! A miracle! Look!
I just went out to my balcony to sweep up the petals from the impatiens - and lo and behold - TOMATOES! RED tomatoes!!! I'm sooooooooooo pleased!
I could not believe my eyes. I'd given up hope. Thought those little guys would be green until Christmas. Remember how I was fretting and fretting in the early Summer that there was absolutely no sign of anything but lovely green leaves. Then suddenly I discovered wee tiny blossoms ... just a few. I watched them for a long time and nothing seemed to be happening with them. Someone on the forum suggested I tickle them. So, tickle I did. I think I tickled them every day for a week! I guess it worked huh?
I just ate some and they are very tasty. Mmmmm.
We've had such marvellous weather out here lately. Unbelieveable. I think they call this Indian Summer. It's just wonderful. Hope its like this at your place too!
Cheers!
RN
Sep 8, 2007 | 11:48 PM PST
Tags: grandson , cute , kids , grandmother , park , photos , grandchildren , golf
Well, here it is 10:35 PM on Saturday night. I'm sittin' here all alone. Husband has gathered together his golf clubs and his buddy and they've headed up to Whistler to enjoy what will likely be their last chance to get away for a "guy's golfing weekend." I've got my fingers and toes crossed that the gorgeous weather we're having now will hold out for them. They've been trying to organize something for ages.
All of a sudden I've got time on my hands ... thus this missive. It's too late to vacuum and too early to make bacon and eggs - so I'm just kickin' back - chllin' out with a martini I made all by myself (that's a first!) in a nice quiet apartment. It's lovely. If this blog entry suddenly stops mid-sentence, you'll know I got the martini measurements all wrong!
My little 2 year old grandson just left. He was here for two nights while his Mama and Papa and the new baby took a trip up to the Okanagan to visit with friends. We had such a good time. He is so darn cute. I love spending time with him. He's not the least bit worried about having to sleep in his playpen. Takes it all in stride. We have fun going to the park and just hangin' out together. He's such a funny little soul to be around. Makes me laugh.
I've just been fooling around with my photos. Took a few yesterday. Got some cute ones. Tell me: Why do I make the assumption that anyone is even remotely interested in looking at my incessant photographs of my grandchildren? I seem to have this compulsion to post them across the universe. I am positively infatuated with all these little kids my kids are producing! I love that saying: "If I knew how absolutely great it is to be a grandmother, I'd have skipped motherhood altogether!" I mean it! REALLY!!! I swear I'm a much better grandmother than I was a mother. I have all the time in the world for my grandchildren. I love playing with them. I love spoiling them.
My grandson and I ate our lunch buffet style in the living room today . . . we had slices of ham and apples dipped in fresh lime juice, and cream of broccoli soup and baby boiled potatoes ... and we dipped everything in Dijon mustard ... ever so slightly ... AND I HAVE A WHITE WOOL ORIENTAL CARPET UNDER MY COFFEE TABLE ... AND I DIDN'T CARE!!!. Nope, it just doesn't matter anymore.
Okay, so I had total control of the mustard AND a Tupperware container under his chin . . . but, can you see me doing that with MY kids?!!! I don't think so!
Ah, it's fun. If you look at the photo of my little pal with my glasses on, you may notice that he's sitting on the kitchen counter. Yep, that's where we have breakfast. We do omlettes and chop fruit together. We both wear glasses. Yep, we get up late, watch cartoons and "do breakfast" - then we head for the park. Of course I'm probably not doing his Mama a favour with my slack parenting style. She may be less than amused when her son starts demanding to sit on the counter while she prepares the meals.
Oh well, never mind, she'll understand in about ... 30 years.
If you enjoy my photos (and why wouldn't you? ;-)) ... I've added an album of my hobbies. I've had letters from a couple of ladies who mentioned that they had hobbies other than gardening that they really enjoyed, and I thought - hey! Me too! So I've made an album of photos that show some of my "stuff." It has really jogged my memory. I've lost my enthusiasm for crafts, and when I look at the projects I can remember I've done . . . they delight me all over again.
Hope you're having a great weekend.
Cheers,
RN
Sep 2, 2007 | 3:16 PM PST
Tags: children , brother , baby , new , love , buddy , gardening , child
There are some children you just can't help falling in love with. This wee chap is my gardening buddy. He is THE most precious child. I took this photo the day the "new" baby brother was born. I just love it!
Sep 2, 2007 | 2:28 PM PST
Tags: photobucket , blog , browse , direct link , how
This is how I do it:
I have a free account with Photobucket - When I want to insert a photo on my blog I open Photobucket. If the photo I want has already been uploaded to photobucket I scroll to that photo and left click on the direct link option and then right click on it and copy it.
If the photo is somewhere else, I hit Browse, find it, and upload it.
Then I return to my blog entry and position the cursor where I want the picture or animation to go.
Then click on the little icon up above where you see the mountain with the sun over it.
Another window will open on your screen. You will then right click where it says Image URL and paste your picture info there.
Click on Preview and you will see your photo.
Click OK and there you have it!
Now you can grab those little corner gizmos and reduce your picture size to where you want it.
I thought I'd share this photo of me wearing my new blouse. Whaddya think?
