ADJUSTING TO CHANGE - Segment 3 (Scroll down for earlier segments)     


     Within the cost of building, you have allowances for lighting, flooring, cabinets, cement work, appliances, etc.  Anything you want is more than the contractor has allowed for.  I asked him if there was a living allowance.  “No,” he answered.  “If you want to actually live in the house, you will have to give me more money.”

     Our lighting allowance was just enough to cover the garage.  Any lights in the house were extra.  So I started pricing candles.  We finally went with the hanging flashlights.  My wife doesn’t like jumping up to turn off a moving switch, but her timing is improving greatly. 

     Our new home came complete with climate control.  We had climate control in the farmhouse, but it controlled us.  In our new home, we controlled the climate.  It didn’t take us long to adjust to this change.

     During the planning, the builder asked, “Would you like a 50, 100, or 150-box garage?”

     “We would really like a two-car garage,” I answered.

     “I’ve rarely seen a car in a garage; it’s usually boxes.  The car is always up the street.  You take a taxi to the house.” 

     As it turned out, he had keen insight.   Once the house was built, we had boxes piled throughout the garage.  “Where’s the car?” my wife asked one day. 

 

     “Up the street,” I answered.  “I just caught a cab to the house.”

     “I think it’s time we get rid of these boxes.  If there was a car in here, we would never find it.  Anyway, most of these boxes are junk.”

     “They’re another man’s treasure,” I responded.

     “Well, if we’re going to get a car in here, you’d better find that man and tell him to come and get his treasure.”

     When you move into a new home, there is always an adjustment period.  It was no different for us.   After living in the farmhouse, it took us about three seconds to adjust.

     Still, I wanted to make our transition as smooth as possible. 

     Because we had lived along a busy highway, I knew we would miss the road noise.  Fortunately, I was able to get a great recording before we moved.  I put it on a CD.  When we went to bed, I turned it on.   We fell asleep listening to screeching tires, honking horns, some great compression braking, along with an assortment of boom boxes on wheels in surround sound. 

 

     We were also serenaded every night by nearby coyotes.  But they couldn’t compete with the compression braking. 

     Another farm tradition that I knew we would miss was the annual “Pipe-burst”, held each winter under our house.  It would start with a pipe bursting, and spraying water in the utility.  From there, it would spread under the house.  What fond memories!  We enjoyed so many get-togethers with the local plumber.  Connie would always make pipe wrench-shaped cookies for him.

    “With all the insulation in our new home, I’m afraid we’ll miss the Pipe-burst,” I told my wife. 

     “Maybe we could take out enough insulation to expose some pipes in time for a cold blast, “she answered.  “Otherwise, it could be a very quiet winter.”

     “Yeah, it would be nice to get together and freeze a few pipes for old time’s sake.”

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