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Well, it's been a few months since I've blogged here. I feel slight twinges of guilt at my absence...
But much has happened. For example, yesterday I turned 50! ME? 50? Fifty is what happens to other people, not me. I'm ageless and live an endless existence. I don't follow those numbers like other people! And yet, here I am. Skin less stretchy, hair less colourful, eyes less able to focus, thoughts less able to focus. I hate that phrase "it happens to us all". No it doesn't. Not in the same way. and not at the same time. So when I turn 50, I"m on my own that day. Those who have gone before have forgotten the age, since they are now in fear of 55, or 60. Those who are not yet here at this hurdle, don't feel the sudden overwhelming difference it makes. And it does. Just a few days ago, I had a thought, or perhaps it was a feeling, that here I was, here I am, half way or more, and I've done it all without making any major mistakes. I haven't got hooked on drugs, didn't get pregnant at the wrong time or with the wrong person, didn't have to claim bankruptcy, didn't damage anyone's life, didn't go to jail or break a bone, or even crash up a car (minor bumps, only). And i've raised a son successfully, -he'll be 16 this week. So What does all this mean? It suddenly meant to me, that I can relax and enjoy the next 50 years! I'm no longer chasing dreams, no longer fearful of not accomplishing something or making an irreparable mistake. I'm here. 50. King of the castle. Top of the sand pile. I can slide into home, letting go of all that effort to get here. I'm here. This is the peak of life. At least for now it feels that way! Who can say what the next 10 years will feel like? I'm content. Life is mine to devour with passion!
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Well, we arrived home from the trip of a lifetime.
And then life became messy again, almost immediately. The day after we returned home, the sewage pipe in the 2nd floor wall suddenly burst. Actually it let go. It had held itself there for 40 years without complaint, despite never having been glued when it was first installed. And suddenly, on December 29th, it decided it had had enough. It let go. And my kitchen below was filled with a spray of sewage, covering counter, cupboards, table and chairs, floor and walls. The insurance took over. They spent 3 long months ripping out the whole ground floor, and opening up holes in the 2nd floor walls. We felt like refugees, living through it all with a toaster and a microwave. It's finally done, and the world is back to a new more beautiful normal! Also this season, the sale of my old cottage has gone through, and there will now be a lull for 6 weeks, until the new cottage is finally mine! Life is getting more and more exciting, as the deadline approaches. I've been waiting since last October! Miraculously, the insurance people packed up all the bedding and belongings that were waiting to go to the cottage, so the house has been cleared of clutter, -16 years of clutter! So now my new business venture begins. Instead of living with tenants and having the stress of feeding other people's kids all summer (and cleaning up after them, and chasing them to pay their rent, or bugging them to take out their garbage at the right time, or clean up their garbage when the raccoons have tipped it all over the alley before the bitchy neighbours start ranting about it to me).. I have found a new system of landlordability. I am renting out both my house and my cottage. They will bring in enough money to cover my expenses and perhaps some left over to take a summer holiday! And when both buildings are rented out, I travel. If only one is rented out, then I have a week in that location. Week at the cottage, week in the city, week at the cottage again. And so, my new freer life begins! So far, 7 bookings have been set for the 2012 summer season. I have covered my summer expenses now. Things are feeling more comfortable already! There are some new furniture items in the house, sitting waiting to be moved to the new cottage. There is a stone counter still not here, -it will soon be installed- and there is a cottage waiting to have it's frills and clutter removed. It will all happen in good time. Patience is gradually becoming easier to find! Oh, and there have been 5 students living here this winter, through the renovations, and 2 large landscape projects have suddenly popped up to be considered. And a new ESL in the Home job has been accepted.. So the summer might be a lot busier than initially anticipated. But ti's all good. My |
MeHilary Slater: I write in the morning before I get out of bed. I write in the evening when the world is quiet. I write at Starbucks, where I can escape the household interruptions. But most of all I write in November, when NaNoWriMo inspires me! Archives
October 2021
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