Saturday, September 12, 2009

Hotel Stories: Sun shining through clouds

Look at my face: tears of joy streaming down my face because of the kindness of our hotel staff. We were looking at apartments, begging for house sitting, considering living apart until the house sells, when one of the residents suggested we negotiate with the hotel. After all, 16 months has to be one of the longest stays they’ve seen.

So now, instead of feeling homeless, we are deeply grateful for a rate that allows us to stay until our house sells. I can’t believe it. Not only am I feeling amazed at how much I WANT to stay, but I am noticing all of the blessings I kind of bypassed before: flowers blooming all around me. I have a gardener! Meals have improved astronomically. Vegetables every night—even dark greens. Quick fixes on sluggish drains. New cable channels available at no extra cost. The list is long, but when I added up the cost of an apartment, with utilities, Internet, cable, moving furniture, dishes, pots and pans, cleaning products, cars, etc. it turned out not to be the great respite I imagined.

Life here isn’t so bad after all. In fact. Life is pretty good.

We still need to move on—get the house sold, get settled. But for now, we are thanking God with all of our hearts.

Friday, September 4, 2009

Hotel Stories: A perfectly good house

Well, I guess I felt it in my bones—bones, mind you, that feel a whole lot! But, this time I called it almost to the day, the day we would learn that our temporary living largesse has ended.

The company has been more than generous, going 16 months with us. That is extreme. So now we have a huge house in Illinois, a perfectly good house, just sitting there looking pretty, and here we are in New England. Homeless.

I believe in God. I believe He is always Good. I believe He has perfect timing. So what is the big picture here? Are we doing something wrong? What are we supposed to do now?

Options: rent a room; have a double house payment; live apart till the house sells; rent it out—not necessarily any more likely than selling it; sell it ourselves and drop the price $10K. I am sure there are more options.

At least for now, I'll be back in Illinois for a long while, and thus my hotel stories appear to be coming to a close.

I will keep you posted for the rest of our short stay. And, then—your guesses are as good as mine. Does this sound discouraged? Somewhat. Yes, there will always be an answer forthcoming. Just maybe not the one we were hoping for.

They’re showing the house again tomorrow. Hope.