I jinxed it

I wavered, briefly, before hitting 'publish' on yesterday's post.

You don't want to jinx it, I told myself.

Then, I had a stern word with myself about being silly and hit publish anyway.

And then the phone rang. The owners have decided to take the place off the market, said the agent. They're frustrated with the length of time it's taken, it's approaching their busy season and they don't have time to be stuffing around with some of the conditions on the contract right now. 

It's not over yet. The agent is hoping she can still talk them around. They didn't know we were planning to sign the contract Saturday. They may agree to a three-month settlement as it doesn't pressure them to pack up and clean up right when they're busy with their work commitments.

I can't say I blame the owners. At all. It's been a huge process. There have been some very time-consuming issues that Dan's stepfather has brought up that Dan has been working through on his behalf (this is a 50/50 joint purchase between us and Dan's parents). And it takes time and patience. I can only write so much on here, for obvious reasons, and that's frustrating because I'M frustrated.

I've quit my job. I think I've found Lucinda a day a week in a local daycare. Our house is about to have a for sale sign on the front and we're hoping to sell before Christmas.

Where are we going to live if this whole thing falls over?

It's All Happening

We are signing a contract THIS WEEKEND on our farm. 

Yes, it's finally, finally happening. The price is agreed, the issues have been worked through and pending some huge unforeseen shift in the cosmos, I think it's safe to say that place is ours. We should settle the week before Christmas.

In other massively exciting developments, I resigned my job yesterday and got hired back as a contractor working from home next year handling a new and exciting project, which is such a win I can hardly stand it. 

I will still have to commute into Brisbane every Thursday, but that's fine. It'll be my city day. I'll dust off my work clothes and comb the dirt out of my hair and go and play with the big kids again. I think I've even found a spot for Lucinda on Thursdays at a family day care near 'our farm'. 

Everything's going our way.

We've been 'staging' our house as the real estate photos are being taken on Monday. In among my many trips to Bunnings, I made a spur of the moment decision to start a succulent garden. They seem to be very big right now, which isn't really surprising when you look at the cute varieties available. 

Adopt us! Adopt us! Look at how cute we are!

YAY!

I'm sort of torn about what to do with this blog. I will have more time and, I suspect, more motivation to photograph and write about life soon. I'm not sure whether to keep this name and URL or move to a new one that better reflects where our life is at now. 

Starting again sounds kind of like a pain, but there's not really much relevance to 'weekend island' anymore. Any ideas, anyone?

A Happy Memory Girl

I just want to say thanks to everyone who left a comment on my last post -- your kind words were much appreciated.

A few of us gathered on Friday night for dinner and drinks in our friend's backyard, where we've gathered so many times before for happier reasons.

We talked a little about what had happened, but we didn't really want to linger there. So, we talked a lot about our many happy memories of Elissa.

She was a happy memory kind of girl.

 

There is more mourning to be done. A funeral this week and a party to be planned. She loved parties, so it seems only right to try and throw a big one in her honour.

But, as is always the way in life, with the bad stuff comes the good (and vice versa).

Tomorrow we're finally making our offer on 'our farm'. It's great that we've made it to this point and while it all feels surreal still, I am looking forward to packing up our belongings, loading up a truck and driving our lives out of the bright lights of Brisbane. 

But right now, I can't help thinking of the big housewarming party we will no doubt hold there and of a girl who would have been first on the dance floor, but won't be able to make it.

People You Know

On Wednesday night, this happened. A friend of ours, a friend for many years, was shot dead by a man she had broken up with. He then shot his dog and himself.

I've been walking around in shock since we were called with the news yesterday morning.

This kind of thing -- this tragic, unexplainable act -- does not happen to people you know. It happens to people from different worlds, who move in different circles, who live far away.

Never people you know.

Elissa was truly one of happiest, fun-loving people I've known. She was uncomplicated, genuine and kind. She loved a good party, she loved to dance and she loved to make amazing cakes to help all her friends celebrate the big occasions in their lives.

She made the most beautiful cake for Dan and my engagement party, another for our wedding, another when Lucinda was born.

I've spent so many happy, laughter-filled evenings over the years chatting with Elissa about everything. The ups and downs. Relationships.

Her concerns about the man who this week shot her dead.

She did not deserve this. No one deserves this. Elissa, particularly, did not deserve this.

Machinations

Yesterday was Dan's birthday and part of his gift was this furniture polish. My cousin has started making it from a recipe that was our grandmother's, and sent us some to try out.

The packaging is almost as good as the heavenly smell.

In other news, we have harvested our first crop of potatoes on Sunday. We took all the teeny tiny ones out last night and fried them up and they were SO GOOD. I've never been so excited to eat a potato before.

It was the perfect end to a lazy long weekend at home.

Today, I'm on holidays and Dan is starting a new job. We're still in negotiations re 'our farm'. Such machinations and we haven't even got to the 'making an offer' stage yet. We're still not sure whether we'll be going into it as a joint venture or alone. We're expecting a final answer this week, and from there we will know the next step for us. I have everything crossed. 

Project Sell

Project Sell is full steam ahead. Dan is working hard getting the house painted and some final landscaping done.

Meanwhile, I've been busily packing stuff up into boxes for storage and trying to create some order from the chaos. 

We've had furniture trucks coming and going fairly regularly lately. Funny the way you only take the time to get your house looking how you really wanted when it's time to leave. 

Like almost everyone else starting out, our furniture was always hand-me-down furniture, or op shop or Ebay finds. It's only been recently that we've started actually going out to shops, picking and paying for pieces we like and hope to have forever. 

Around the time I started 30, I also decided it was time to bite the bullet and buy some art. My mum has been active in the Tasmanian art scene for decades, so she was only too happy to help me start to narrow down artists and styles I liked.

I started with this piece, by a NSW-based artist. I'm hoping to add to it soon and have my eye on a couple of Tasmanian artists. Tasmania has an interest-free art purchasing scheme run by the Government to encourage investment in the local art scene.

I think it's a fantastic idea and intend to take full advantage of it.

So here we are, finally living in a house that's starting to look 'done', while sneakily boxing up and storing away anything that doesn't fit into the new aesthetic. It's exciting times ahead.

Steps

I'm a little excited today. It's my last day of work for nearly a fortnight and I'm really looking forward to some extra quality time at home.

Weeknight vignette

We're moving full-steam ahead now to get our home on the market. It's exciting and a little overwhelming. With the exception of the 10 months we rented up at Sandgate, we've lived in this house for seven years -- since I was 23 years old.
In that time, it's transitioned from a shabby party house with rooms we rented out to friends to a comfortable, familiar family home.

We could stay here longer and be perfectly comfortable, and there's a part of me that thinks maybe we should just do that. It's always easier to maintain the status quo, after all. To just keep doing what we've been doing for years as more years run past us at an ever-quickening pace.

And yet... somehow, the time feels right to make a change of lifestyle. If we can possibly, humanly pull it off.

We've got a little storage unit rented up the road to move all our excess stuff into now. Dan is working days and nights under spotlight to get the exterior painted before he starts his new job on Monday.

 A quick tidy up, a For Sale sign and ideally, a quick offer.

A few more steps up the mountain.