Multi-Faceted Update
New House: The new house is almost finished. Yes, I started the new blog with the intent of documenting the progress week by week. I'd take mental note of some things when we were out there, and then before I knew it, 3 or 4 weeks had passed and I wished I had written everything down. I guess I'd make a terrible news reporter. Anyway, here's the finished product:
There are still some touch-up things that they have to do, and obviously we'll do our walk-through to establish the "You're not getting away with that" list. For the most part, we've been pretty happy with the work that's been done. The two biggest mess-ups so far have been that the wrong sink was installed (which will be fixed), and the front door & shutters were painted the wrong color. The funny thing is, the color has pretty much grown on us, and we're keeping it the way it is.
What's keeping us from moving? You guessed it--our current house. We've been VERY happy with the activity...In about 12 weeks time, it's probably shown 10 times. We've heard feedback ranging from "She loved the house, but didn't like the neighborhood" to "The cats freaked my client out." (WTH?? They ain't stayin!). Heck, it showed today, and the agent that showed it said that she later found out the prospective buyer only makes $15,000/yr and is looking for a house note of $500 or less. Such is the experience of having your house on the market. It really is an emotional roller coaster. Truth be told, I think I'm getting less and less optimistic every day, but I try not to get too down about it. As much as I wanna get excited about a newer house, and a garage, and a laudry room, and a bonus room, etc.....It truly defines the term "guarded optimism."
Motorcycling: The weekend of June 23-25, I spent some 20 hours or so on the campus of Southwest Tennessee Community College, the local host of the Motorcycle Safety Foundation (MSF) RiderCourse. This curriculum is given nationwide, so taking it in one state is pretty much identical to taking it in another. Passing the class involves both a written test and a motorcycle skills test, and the instructors have the ability to immediately fail or dismiss a student at any time if they feel like he/she just isn't "getting it" or poses a safety risk to him/herself or other riders. In some states (like Tennessee), a MSF 'diploma' gets you a state motorcycle license test exemption, and even a motorcycle insurance discount. In case you're wondering, I scored 98% on the written and 90% on the riding test, and I'm now a licensed motorcyclist in Tennessee. Scary, huh?
As far as bike shopping goes, I haven't gotten that far. I've really been struggling with whether to get the shiny, new, don't-have-to-worry-about-maintenance one, or a more economical, used one that might have to withstand some mistakes. The hard part is that cycles tend to hold their value much better than cars, so whereas a new one might be $6000, a used, 3 or 4 year old bike with 5-10 thousand miles might still cost me $4500, so the gray area is a tiny one. It's not really the same as buying a new car for $10,000 or a 4-year old one for $3,500. There's actually been a time or two that I thought I was really close to getting one, but I let one slip away because it looked like I was gonna get a steal on another one. That opportunity got delayed right after an agreement was made to purchase, but the seller has promised to honor the commitment to sell it to me, whenever that might be. Trust me--it's a long story. Now I'm looking at a couple of used ones--same model, but one is an '03 that is in Tulsa, OK while another is an '04 that is in Faith, NC. Who knows where I'll end up. I can already tell from message boards that I read and a handful of online "friends" that I've met that the comraderie and such between motorcyclists is something that is really unique--and it has nothing to do with Hell's Angels or biker gangs or beating people up! I feel like I'm halfway to being able to call myself a motorcyclist, but I won't be an official member until I'm the proud owner of two wheels. Keep the shiny side up, and Ride Safe!
Congrats to Leah...Again!: I blogged a little while back about Leah winning a 1st quarter regional teller award. For one, the award itself is quite an accomplishment. Secondly, it was more significant because one of the elements of the selection criteria is simply number of transactions processed, and Leah spent a week in the hospital and some more time off of teller row filling in another position. Well, Leah has once again claimed one of the top 3 spots in the entire region for the 2nd quarter. She won 3rd place last time, and is hoping to improve upon that this time (first place gets her 500 clams!). The awards luncheon is next week, so send some good thoughts her way!
1-year Countdown: Isn't it hard to believe that Nicholas is almost 9 months old? Next week we will be celebrating Micah's one-year anniversary in this world, and Nicholas's turn will be here before we know it. He isn't quite crawling yet, but seems to want to very badly. Right now, his mode of transportation is rolling, but I'm sure that one day we'll yearn for such simplicity. He still hasn't cut any teeth, which has been a bit frustrating for mommy and daddy from a, "Will it ever happen?" standpoint. He's still a very happy, good baby, and we couldn't be luckier, in our opinion. Leah and I have joked that God is buttering us up, and our next one will be a real firecracker and hard to handle! Everybody we encounter seems to comment on how alert and happy he seems to be, and for the most part, he is.
Ok, that's the high points. I've gotta be at work in less than 7 hours. Time to go to bed, and my tea is long gone. : )
posted by Eric C at 11:07 PM
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