. . . that would be me!
today, i sold my house. or rather, my ex-husband and i accepted an offer on the house we own together, the one i live in, the one we raised our sons in. about a month from now, a new family will move into the house. it’s a great house for raising a family, for giving parties, for building a life!
every year, stephen and i gave a boxing day party. december 26th, hosting as many as a hundred people. here i am at one of those parties!
selling a house is a little freaky. my ex and i were alternately happy and terrified. and the next month will be awfully busy for me as i try to figure out where every piece of furniture, book, clothes and dishes are to go. . . and then of course, there’s me.
on december 31, 2010 i made a new years resolution to meet all 325 of my facebook friends by the end of 2011. i managed 292, exactly 90%. . . . thirteen countries, fifty flights, almost every state in the union. and now that my “safe” place, my home, is going to be sold, i realize that i am untethered.
it’s alternately scary and exciting.
after we sorted out the details, my ex and i were wrung out. this is a house with so many memories. i don't know--will the smell of angel perfume ever really get out of the house? maybe it will linger. i got angel body lotion after the negotiations were over, sort of an impulse purchase or maybe just a nervous breakdown. i might not have a home, but i will smell fabulous!
arlynnpresser 
April 24th, 2012 at 8:05 pm
Wow! Moving out of house (safe haven). I would be freaking out if I didn’t have any place to go.
You haven’t lost your body. Actually, that is where you live your entire life. So in a way your homeless, and in a way you’re not.
So what happens if your have to move out of body? Move in with God?
April 25th, 2012 at 1:15 am
i am very very worried about this because yeah, i think i’m moving in with God!
April 24th, 2012 at 8:08 pm
it’s a little freaky to think of losing the “safe” place!!!
April 24th, 2012 at 8:21 pm
Home is wherever you want it to be.. manage the memories well you choose the color
April 24th, 2012 at 8:58 pm
Hi Arlynn,…
She Said:
“i got angel body lotion after the negotiations were over, sort of an impulse purchase or maybe just a nervous breakdown. i might not have a home, but i will smell fabulous!”
He Said:
1. Congradulations on the contract of sale in this tough market
nationally…!!!
2. Because I’ve been there (the house saling),..I imagine
all this is scary for you Arlynn.
I’ve never married nor have I raised children, thus I can’t identify with
your memories associated with that.
This sounds like an opportunity for change to me,…a potential blank
canvas for you to “paint” your new home literally and
figuratively,…new memories too…???!!! Keep in mind that this is not
said to negate the old memories.
Remember to Visualize Big and Bright opportunities for yourself
Arlynn…!!!
3. Because I noticed that you did not mention this huge aspect of
yourself in your recent post,…as best I can tell,…remember to look
in the mirror and say to yourself:
“I look and am fabulous from the inside out…!!!”,…or some other
phrase that you choose for yourself.
P.S.
I have no clue as to what “Angel Perfume” smells like but I imagine that it’s “De-Lovely”…. 🙂
So much for smell-a-vision…..Ha!…Ha!…Ha!
Howard
April 25th, 2012 at 1:15 am
howard, you have made my week!!!! and i so wish you were in town here but i know i’m going to descend on you soon!
April 24th, 2012 at 11:23 pm
wow, big tough thing happening there… glad that you were able to sell, hopefully you have already found another place to lay your head when the time comes. It’s good not to have cement holding you down, but at the same time it is also quite necessary to know that there is a bed to sleep in. So, if ever you find yourself without said bed, then I will let you couch surf here at anytime… Not the most convenient of locations… but hey. a friend in need is a friend in deed…. Good Luck! Enjoy the freedom of being homeless – but on the other hand… hope it isn’t for long! You are amazingly strong and are surely a God send to those that can’t open the door and take that big step…. well done you!
April 25th, 2012 at 12:38 am
Dear Arlynn,
I can’t even imagine the prospect of having to leae my “safe haven” but one never knows what is lurking around the corners of our lives…divorce, disability,sickness, foreclosure, or even death…I’ll bet there are 292 couches available out there for you if you really needed one…make that 293 couches…best wishes…a fellow blogger, and facebook enthusiast…
Frank
April 25th, 2012 at 12:47 am
Dear Arlynn,
Wow, I can’t even imagine having to leave my “safe haven’ I call home, esp. in this difficult economic downturn that our country is going through…One never know what is lurking around the corner for any of us, divorce, disability or sickness, loss of a job, foreclosure, or even worse, a death…I’m sure there are 292 couches available out there should you really need one…no, make that 293 couches…:)
Your fellow blogger, and facebook enthusiast
Frank
April 25th, 2012 at 1:16 am
yup, i will have just my suitcase. i’ll be there sig somehow i think iceland is in my future!
April 25th, 2012 at 1:55 am
arlynn,
I would make this my number one priority in life: “Get plenty of rest.”
Maybe you could go to a women’s shelter or something temporarily. But I’m not telling you what to do. Just saying that it can be scary not having a place to hang your hat, and I know the feeling.
sig’s couch is better than a sidewalk any day.
April 26th, 2012 at 8:37 pm
i’m probably going to find a sweet efficiency hotel but i am so happy that the home will have a wonderful owner who will appreciate and nurture it!
April 26th, 2012 at 8:52 pm
Apartments aren’t such a bad idea after spending years married to someone in another house. It allows you some space to sort out things, and usually frees you up from having to keep track of the same things you would have to in a rental house. After a couple of years of singleness, I am enjoying the simplicity of it myself.
April 26th, 2012 at 8:58 pm
Oh, and if you ever get down my way- the Greenbrier region of West Virginia (see Greenbrier Resort), I’d make sure you had a place to stay.
April 26th, 2012 at 9:09 pm
thank you very very much are you anywhere near morgantown?
April 27th, 2012 at 12:19 am
Three hours south and east. Closer to the Virginia/WV border- it’s a tourist area. Lewisburg (theatre & the arts), White Sulphur Springs (Greenbrier Resort), ski resorts within an hour drive, lots of mountains, and wonderfully welcoming people.
April 27th, 2012 at 12:06 am
You are a very brave and strong person, I admire your footsteps! Taking a step back from your Facebook friend adventure and your recent sale of your home. It seems almost as if your Facebook adventure has prepared you for leaving your home, a sort of transition if you will, and prepared you to step bravely out into the world creating a safe place wherever you are at any given time (meaning you are free to go anywhere your feet take you without being tied to one place). Congratulations on your freedom!
April 27th, 2012 at 8:03 am
i absolutely agree with you! i sort of feel like i don’t even want to have a permanent address for a few months just so i can really do it up right. . .