TURN, TURN, TURN

To everything turn turn turn, there is a season turn turn turn,
A time to be born, a time to die. A time to build up, a time to break down..”

Well, it must be true, because both my stove and microwave have broken down. All of the appliances were installed with the house in 2013 – just ten years ago, but perhaps that’s the life expectancy of things these days.

We’ve already had to replace the kitchen faucet, which seemed like a fun project, but wasn’t, at all. Two faucets, and three visits from the plumber later, we have one that works. Kind of.

We also replaced the heating element in the oven. Things were taking longer than I thought they should to cook. Was it the oven, or was it just me? I bought an oven thermometer which told me the oven was fine. A few days later I was baking a large gluten-free carrot cake. When the timer went off, telling me the cake was done, I was met by a hot mess! The finicky heating element had finally given out.

Now a burner on the glass-top stove heats, then doesn’t. Heats, then doesn’t. Like someone driving with one foot on the gas and one on the brake.
At least I have three other burners. The nuke however, won’t heat at all and sounds like it’s about to blast-off into outer space when you turn it on. I didn’t realize how much I rely on it, until it quit working.

Well, time to move! Kidding. Actually, not kidding.

For a while we have been talking about downsizing even further, and moving to our “forever home.” We realized that neither of us would want to live here without the other. We’ve realized that we don’t enjoy yardwork anymore, so we discussed another apartment – no maintenance – even going to tour an over-55 complex that would be like living in a luxury hotel. Concierge, croissants and coffee in the morning! But they were tiny and expensive and their pool was mostly in the shade..

We looked at another complex that was beautiful, with both veggie and flower gardens, a beautiful pool and patio set-up, large balconies, and friendly staff… but it was far from everything… out in a cow pasture. We put the idea of an apartment on a back burner. Fitting analogy.

Then, around the holidays a friend called to say hello. He used to live three blocks from my cottage in downtown Austin. I asked how things were going and he told me he’d sold his house and moved into an apartment that he’d worked on back in the late 80’s. He’s a landscape architect. I know the area, but had never noticed the apartments – turns out they are tucked back in the woods and some even overlook a canyon and preserve.

Intrigued, we arranged for a tour of a couple different floor plans and explored the grounds, visiting with my/our friend for a bit afterward. He said the tenants tend to be older professionals, lots of retired folks, and it’s a quiet place. He seemed very content there. Could we be?

.

Since then we’ve been talking about the things we like , and I did a “pros and cons” list. There are 15 items on the “pros” side, one of which is a gas stove and oven. And of the 3 things on the “cons” side, only one of them is a real drag – moving!

The apartment would be close to our kids, so we’d get to see them more often. And great food and shopping are within a couple of miles in all directions.
It seems like it could be a very nice area to grow older. And speaking of that, my sweetie celebrated his eightieth birthday last week! We went out for a delicious dinner and our favorite cake on the planet – Whiskey Cake. It’s based on a British sticky toffee pudding topped with spicy roasted nuts and a cremé anglais. The cake itself isn’t like anything we’ve ever had before. Perfect for celebrating a man like no other!

The adventure continues. Tomorrow I am having a half-price sale on everything in my Etsy shop: etsy.com/shop/fairviewphotos

Great, and grateful, to talk to y’all again.
XO Donna

9 thoughts on “TURN, TURN, TURN

  1. Janelle

    Donna, I totally get the conundrum about moving/downsizing. We went through that scenario a few years ago. After retiring, we moved to a small ranch outside of Columbus, Texas. Loved the country life with gardening, animals and all that came with it. Approaching 65 and after 10 years the maintenance became too much so we started scouting around for our forever home. We were definitely not apartment dwellers. Finally settled on Brenham and found a lovely one story 3 bedroom 2 bath in a nice quiet neighborhood and still enjoy some yard/garden work. We have excellent health care here and plenty of shopping and restaurants. Happy birthday to your sweetie and hope you can come to some decisions about what abode works for you.

    • Thank you, Janelle. Brenham is just beautiful, glad you found your forever home! I moved to Austin in 1978 and lived there till I meeting my sweetheart. 20 years later, this feels like going home to me. He’s not as sure… LOL

  2. Joan

    I hear you about downsizing. We have lived in this small 2 bedroom, 1 bath home for 25 years after we married and bought it together. My husband did not want a big home and mortgage so I was content to settle for this. Now I am glad the house is as small as it is.
    I did not want to live in his former house, which he eventually sold. We are now 82 and I find that I have less energy to take care of the huge yard that I planted with roses, and shrubs, and the front yard with native, drought tolerant plants. We live in Ventura County below Santa Barbara so it is a
    warm climate and everything grows huge here. I now have gardeners to help as I can no longer do heavy pruning or weeding.

    We have friends who live in senior retirement complexes that we visit, but we know that is not what we want to do. It is a problem that one day we will have to solve. For now, we just patch up what needs to be fixed in this 70 year old house, and live with the rest. Best wishes.

    • Hello, Joan – well you certainly live in a lovely area – I’ll bet your 70 year old house and gardens are spectacular! We are already “downsized” and live in a 55+ community, but after four years here I realize I’m less “Green Acres” and more “city life.” I’m sure you’ll know what to do when it needs to be done. Thank you for your thoughtful comment! XO Donna

  3. Jillian

    Join the club….Rob and I just downsized to half the size and it was heartbreaking to give or throw away many things. But we are now living in an independent living complex where any and all items such as ovens and stoves and light bulbs are all their responsibility. Also, all utilities such as wanter, electric, gardeners, etc. are paid by them. So easy……. Jillian

    • I was hoping that went smoothly, Congratulations! It is tough to let go of things we like – I keep reminding myself that I can’t take any of it with me when I die. LOL I am so happy you can focus on what really matters now – each other and having as much fun as possible! XO Donna

  4. Jillian Tessler

    Join the club….Rob and I just downsized to half the size and it was heartbreaking to give or throw away many things. But we are now living in an independent living complex where any and all items such as ovens and stoves and light bulbs are all their responsibility. Also, all utilities such as wanter, electric, gardeners, etc. are paid by them. So easy……. Jillian

    Your comment is awaiting moderation.

    MARCH 2, 2023 AT 9:13 AM REPLY

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