It's now two years since the contractor started putting our house together on the foundation in the back forty of the farm I grew up on. So many things have changed in that time. Two years ago I was living at the Old Towne Motel south of Westby. It was my home for five months during our transition from Madison to Westby. It was very comfortable, complete with two recliners, bookcases, a table, television, phone, morning coffee and rolls, plus I could use their microwave and refrigerator. I thank Carroll and Pat Olson again for letting me stay in the “Sherpe Suite.” I told Linda, it was so comfortable, we should forget about building a house and live at the motel. It would be a lot cheaper. Even though she liked the Sherpe Suite, she thought the fresh country air had warped my brain. We didn’t cancel the construction!
In February 2008, I finally moved into our completed house and Linda moved from our Madison house to Westby. Let me say to everyone, if you don’t need to sell a house in this down economy, stay where you are. Luckily we finally sold our Madison house after about ten months on the market and feel very fortunate that we got rid of it, even if we took a beating.
We managed to survive the bitter cold weather and record snows of that first winter. There was a huge snowstorm the day before we moved, and a storm the day after, but luckily, the snow held off on the day we moved. After the long winter, it was nice to see spring finally arrive.
Spring brought mud around our new house and plenty of weeds. It also brought more torrential rain and floods. Again we were lucky. All the water problems we experienced during the building process had been a blessing in disguise. As a result, many things were implemented to avoid future water problems. When everyone else was experiencing water troubles during the June, 2008 flood, our basement was dry as a bone.
After three attempts to get grass seeded before another rain, we finally succeeded. It grew so good, I had to break down and buy a riding lawnmower… a John Deere of course.
I was ready for that first winter in our house on the prairie where the winds blow strong and create deep drifts in our driveway. I had purchased an old, used snow blower at a neighbor’s auction. Back in Madison, I always used a shovel and never owned a snow blower. But then our driveway was much shorter too. I had volunteered to buy matching shovels for Linda and me, but that suggestion didn’t go over as good as I had hoped!
You get what you pay for. That pre-owned (let’s tell it like it is, that old snow blower was not just pre-owned, it was prehistoric) and was mighty short on blowing power. It broke down twice last winter and I’m beginning to think a shovel works just as good with fewer problems. But then I’m not as young as I used to be. I still get back problems from when I broke my tailbone years ago.
As frugal as I try to be, I may have to break down and buy a new snow blower this year. Uff da, it pains me just to write those words. So far, I’m still holding out for matching shovels. Here we are at the end of November, as I write this, and the grass is still green. Maybe I won’t need those shovels this winter!
After two years I finally got around to unpacking all our boxes and stuff in the basement. When I started unpacking, I found things back that I’d been looking for and thought I’d probably thrown in the garbage or given to Good Will. Anyone who’s cleaned out and packed up a house after thirty-plus years will understand how things can become misplaced. At first I was sorting, packing, and labeling every box with great care. As time went on, I was throwing stuff left and right, and what we kept was stuffed into any box where it would fit. Why we kept half the stuff we had is beyond my comprehension. At the time you never know when you might need that used nail, that old, torn, pair of jeans that’s three sizes too small, and countless knick-knacks and stuff that hadn’t seen the light of day for twenty-plus years. Now as I went about unpacking the boxes in the basement, I wondered why we kept half the stuff we moved?!
One thing I haven’t second-guessed is my decision to accept the Marketing Manager job at Vernon Telephone Cooperative in Westby, and moving after forty years in the advertising business in Madison. Many friends thought I was crazy to make those changes at my age, when most of them were retiring or already retired. Maybe I am crazy, but then I’ve always been accused of taking the road less traveled. Linda loves it here too, has many new friends, and says she has the best of both worlds.
We now have beautiful sunrises and sunsets, deer roaming through our back yard, clouds, and the night sky filled with billions of stars. The road less traveled may be filled with many changes, but the trip is great.
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