November 29, 2019
Back in the USA
While we were gone, Southern California experienced a very rainy winter, ending over seven years of drought. When we arrived in Los Angeles in January 2019, the surrounding hills were so green, I was reminded of Ireland. Unfortunately, my photos from L.A. were accidentally deleted.
We had sold our car in May 2018, just before heading to Europe, where public transportation served all our needs. Back in the US, we needed a car, so after a series of rentals, we bought a RAV4 hybrid. We lived in an extended-stay hotel while taking care of various business and financial matters.
Eventually, we packed our suitcases and drove north. In southwestern Washington, we moved into another extended-stay hotel and went house-hunting. It took our realtor only about three days to find a house that matched our wish list. We wanted property where we could plant a vegetable garden and some fruit trees. Our sellers already had a great garden and several trees. They were kind enough to show us around and share some of their harvest with us. After a 30-day escrow, we took possession of the house, but we weren't quite ready to move in. We began planning renovations and ordering furniture. Steve started doing yard work, enjoying the riding mower that came with the house.
This county is notorious for its extremely slow permit process, and, of course, renovations always take longer than expected. Contractors here are extraordinarily busy; we weren't able to get estimates for our project until mid-August. Work began, slowly. Summer passed, and then Fall. During this time, we did some sightseeing in the area, and enjoyed a few visits from friends and relatives. We got new driver's licences and registered to vote. We met some of our new neighbors. The building permits finally came through, and work was completed. The pod containing the possessions we had kept when we sold our old house was delivered. Our good friend Carlton came up from Los Angeles to give us a hand. He and Steve unloaded the pod, moved boxes into the house, and assembled our new bookcases and desks.
Finally, on November 10, we spent our first night in our new home.
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Labels:
Los Angeles,
moving,
renovations,
Washington State
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