Should Have Been a Surveyor and Other Musings

We just got the bill from our surveyor this weekend and...holy crap! Why didn't I go into the surveying business? $972 and we only have 1 acre of land - we live in a subdivision for Christ's sake! So...yeah. Just a bit miffed on the cost. Maybe work has been scarce and he's really, really jacked up the price or something.

Life has been super busy lately between my work and projects, Hubby's work, and the home improvement projects we've been taking on...namely our fence that's costing out the wazoo (much more than we alloted) after having the land surveyed to make sure we had the correct property boundaries. That was after our neighbor claimed that they owned 4 feet outside of their fence. They own 3 feet outside it but umm...if you knew you owned that three feet...why didn't you fence it in? Makes no sense at all to me. On the other hand, the old lady neighbor on the other side has her fence on 3 feet of our property. We don't mind that so much. She's nice and shares things from her garden with us AND keeps us up on the neighborhood gossip since we're not very social with our neighbors. Good stuff.

We still have to finish the fence and we're also working on a front porch (we have a back deck but I prefer shade), a new roof, and maybe a garden if we can squeeze in the time for that. A garden for the lazy housewife you ask? Why yes, bloggy friends and other internet people, I do know a little bit about gardening. I hated doing it as a kid but I miss the fresh foods now and no matter what people say, the stuff from the supermarket DOES NOT taste the same.

I'm also a little sad as I make my rounds through the blogosphere reading about the tough times everyone is having. I grew up with very poor parents and though I never want to go back to that state if it's within my means to stop it, I can empathize. People who bought homes that they could easily afford are now losing what they thought were stable jobs and then losing their homes, too. They're making cutbacks and doing without a lot of things that they not only want, but things they need, too, just trying to make ends meet. These people aren't looking for handouts; they want to work but simply cant find jobs in this devestated economy. I feel very lucky to have a job and that hubby does, too. Keep your chin up, everyone, don't stop trying and as my friend Tammy has been quoting lately, "Tough times don't last; tough people do." We'll all make it through.

Should Have Been a Surveyor and Other Musings