The Whole Story

Does anyone else compose blog posts in their minds? I often do, while I'm digging in the garden, ironing, or sometimes while I'm on a walk. They are usually fairly complete, with words or phrases that I want to use, and complete with photos that I've also composed in my mind.

So in the space above, imagine a photo of John and I smiling cheerfully in front of a modest, cottage-like house located in Elkton, MD. While we're composing this imaginary picture, please feel free to add some lovely clematis vines twining on the porch supports, a nice shade tree or two, and maybe a useful mud room along with a three-season sun room. We'll add the porch swing and the rest of the landscaping later after we've lived there for a while.

I've been imagining this place since February when John learned his job was moving to Newark, DE. We're not yet old enough and definitely not financially ready to retire, so we pretty much have to move. The whole thing is complicated a bit by the fact that John's group will double in size, and he'll still need to manage people in NJ, in addition to the people in Newark, DE and Harrogate, UK. The timeline is really compressed (he needs to be in DE by Sept. 1) so our plan is to try and keep the NJ house, get a small place in DE, sell the DE and NJ houses in 3 years, retire and move to wherever (CO? MT? I can't even predict now).

I've been adding details to this picture in my mind since March when we started looking for houses in the area. I know it's a dream, and I've run face first into reality which happens to everyone looking at houses. We've been driving down to DE once or twice a week for several months, and last weekend I made three round trips (about 2.5 hrs. each way) in four days. We put an offer on a place on Fri., and then got home about midnight. We found out Sat. that the house had active termites and expensive septic issues, so we pulled that offer. We left NJ again at 6:00 am on Sunday, drove down and looked at another house, made another offer, and then figured out that the seller does not own the land that the driveway is on. John and I figured this out by finding the deed on line once we got home and working it out ourselves with our GPS coordinate drawings scattered among the sewage disposal inspection paperwork photo from yesterday. The driveway is on an undeeded right-of-way, and supposedly the seller did not know this. I find that hard to believe, but I'm not a gambler and want deeded access to any place I buy. (I know; I'm picky!)

So that's the whole story - so far. We have to relocate (in a part-time, halfway, half-assed sort of way), I really don't want to, the finances of this are keeping me up at night, but there are others in the company who have it much worse. Many are trying to decide whether and how to split up their families, careers, kids, and lives. The relocation assistance that is being offered doesn't come anywhere near keeping employees whole, and the new tax plan screws us all as far as not being able to deduct moving-related expenses.

There are some bright spots. The company's research center is on the DE/MD state line, and we could live in rural Elkton and have a 10 minute commute. I've spent quite a bit of time in the Elkton library while John has been trying to work, and it's wonderful. And banana bread beer (which surprisingly tastes very good) is readily available in the area!

If you've made it this far, thanks for reading. I think I'm done picturing this imaginary house, especially because we're going back to DE Saturday - Tuesday, and I hope to finally find something simply suitable, affordable, with a driveway, but without termites and septic problems. Fingers crossed (and a banana bread beer to celebrate if it happens)!