Smugglers Cove Whidbey Island

So, think about it.  This is what the land looks like…post clearing, pre-building.  Now, envision a trailer sitting off to the side.  A smallish trailer amidst the mud or dust, depending on the weather.  Now, look down and imagine 12 feet padding in and out of the trailer.  Are you getting the picture?  We sure did.

Add to this little mix the luxury of water….and electricity…neither of which exist as yet within reach.  There’s a porta-potty.  Really?

We played that game years ago in Alaska.  No running water.  It was an adventure for two young married kids and our toddler.  Showers were taken at the University and they were few and far between.  Did I really want to play that game again?  No.

I like having indoor plumbing.  I like being able to shower whenever I want.  I like flipping a switch and having electric light and a radio.  I am spoiled.  Yup.

Now, what?

The trip to the Northwest took a few days and we stayed in pet-friendly hotels along the way.  The quality of these abodes varied widely, but we were happy to be able to have the animals safe and not car-bound.  Lucy took to hotel life quite nicely.  As you can see, she was able to relax.

The dogs were good and we only received one “barking” complaint and that was after we got to the Island.  Everyone was wound up.  Everyone was ready for a “home”.

So, we arrived and began the search for a trailer.  Here was the original plan; buy a trailer and drag it to the property.  Live in the trailer while the house was being built.  We got to the property and an acre+ had been cleared for the house.  That meant an acre+ of dirt.  Dirt, dogs and people going in and out of a trailer.  Hmm.

We got to thinking about being in that trailer with no water, no electricity and lots of dirt.  So we would have a nice trailer, turned into a dirt bin in short time.  We would have to join a gym in order to take showers.  We already had a porta-potty on the building site.

Really?  Are we nuts or what?

So much has happened in the past few weeks.  Our home of 20+ years had become a burden that we wanted to leave behind.  So, we left.

In the last few moments, we tossed and purged and tucked away things we thought we might need.  We left.

I, with 2 dogs and 2 cats in the car and Mark, with a truckload of items and a trailer of dreams; we left.

This will not be my breakfast, lunch or dinner.  The food has mostly been given away, piled high in the bird feeders or set out for the trash.  The necessities will go last…the coffee maker, beverages, and some crackers.

Yesterday was the breaking point for the cats.  They have been very upset that their world shrinks on a daily basis.  No waterbed to sleep on; cat tree gone, guest bed gone.  No couch, no recliners, no comfy spots.  The litter boxes have been downsized so they fit into the crates.  Then the absolute insult to injury came when I put on their harnesses, something they have not worn for years.  Lucy was not terribly upset, but Bella glared.  Then I had to adjust the size and refit them.  Seriously?  They kept them on all day and all night.  This morning, Bella was lodged in the one remaining cat bed and she would not budge.  Lucky for her, I coaxed her out and took off the harness.  I had purchased ID tags and needed to get them on.  So, the tags are on, but the harnesses are not.  We’ll give them a brief respite and then the battle begins.  I have a feeling that Bella will let her displeasure be known.

Look at that tent.  It will be our new home in a few days.  Talk about deja vu and circles of life and all of that.  We started in a tent and we will be back in one soon.

The POD leaves Friday.  It has to be packed and ready to go.  We have had it for 2 months and we have worked at emptying this home of 25 years diligently.

Frugal.  That, for me, will be my next challenge and a sought-after goal.  I do not want to open any door and see “stuff”.  If something comes into my new home, my new tent, my new travel trailer…it better be special.  It better be profoundly needed.  Beautiful, useful, necessary or a treasure.

We scrambled today.  The garage was cleaned out and loads of good things went to the thrift store.  We took a break and reviewed the selling documents for this home.  We scurried to do this, that and the other thing.  Two seconds later, the phone rang for the first “showing”.  Then a bit later, another call for another showing.

All the while…I am texting my friend about a baby trying to be born.  We were all struggling, but birthing a baby can outdo anything.

We came home and swooped upon things we thought might need to be done.

Here’s what I learned. My fabulous deck, with all it’s wonderfulness doesn’t mean squat to other people.  Horse people…well, I don’t comprehend their needs…they don’t seem to have needs, unless they are for their horses.  I want someone to love what I love and that is not going to happen.  I need to NOT be here for the next showing.  Totally.  Done. Invisible.

I wonder if the barn will be used for horses?  I wonder if that loft will hold bales of hay?  What a concept.  We aren’t “horse folks” and have never used the barn for animals.  Oh, there have been skunks, rabbits, bats and cats who have wandered through.  The dogs love going in there and sniffing all the various scents.  Our previous dog had several close encounters with skunks.  That’s never a pleasant thing with which to deal.  The current dogs have never had a skunk run-in, but I think that has more to do with added developments, than less canine curiosity.

So, what was in the barn?  We have never had a closet, room or flat surface that we could not fill with stuff.  The barn held: mowers, weed whackers, tools, plastic bins, weaving materials, seed starters, more tools, drip-lines, sleds, chairs, tables, croquet and volleyball equipment, plant pots, insulation, siding, bed frames, etc.  Well, it is all gone.  Dispersed throughout the community. Some given away and some sold.  Much more given away.  And people are grateful to get the things we no longer want or need.

We move forward.  Several rooms are empty.  The echo in the house grows louder.  The days here are few.  The days here were many.

We are moving into a new theatre.  We are leaving behind so much baggage.  Leaving behind things that were once special and now are placed elsewhere.  Who is sitting in this chair tonight?  Who has made-up my grandmother’s bed into a comfortable place to be?

While the exiting is difficult, we need to embrace the passion for the next step.  Where will our next comfortable chair be?  Will we make the next cat tree-house, or will it come from elsewhere?  Passion in walking the beach;  exploring new venues; meeting new people.

Passion…

Today, the cat tree went to a new home.  Oh man…there are some sad girls in the house.  Their area of comfortable living keeps shrinking and now their very own cat tree-house has been given away?  Are you kidding me?  Poor babies…

A couple of weeks ago, I put the cat crates near their feeding dishes.  I put in a small littler-box, filled the cup with water and sprinkled the food dish with their normal morning treats.  They eat the treats.  They are not impressed with the rest of it.

So, to the slap-in-the-face of me selling the beer frig out from under my husband, now I have given away the cat tree.  Where will it end?

There just isn’t much left to sell or give away.  We are down to the bits and pieces of daily life.

Do we pack it today or wait a couple of days?  Do we need this?  Should we toss this and buy new when we get there?  We are down to the minuscule bits and they are hanging on with sharp nails.

It is so dry this summer.  Years of dry, dry, dry.  Colorado is paying the price of drought and beetle kill.  It is nature’s way of cleaning house, but it is not timed well for us.  We are on a well and we are able to water out trees and shrubs.  However, we could have the water on 24/7 and it would not be enough.

Friends have been evacuated.  The smoke billows in the sky.  The sun is orange and sickly.  The heat is relentless.

….and yet in the Whidbey newspaper, there were tales of the caterpillar infestation.  We just bought a tent.  Seriously?  There is really no comparison, but…

So, we sort, toss, sell and move forward.  Here we come, ready or not.