Monday, April 28, 2008

Manic Monday

What's Jack Up to? He's shaking of the rain after his walk this morning and marveling over the quiet of the house. Whew. Could it be we're alone again, Jack?


The weekend and Spring Break are both over and it's back to the grind. It was nice to have a week without the daily push and shove, but it will also be nice to have a few hours of alone time in the house again. Possibly a few house of writing time once all the missed errands of the week are done in a a day or two. Can you say laundry?


This weekend before all the yard work the DH and I were super nosey and went to see a house that doesn't know there's a recession going on and gas is at 4.00 a gallon. It's in walking distance from our house and we've watched this mini-mansion being built for the past year and a half so when the sign went up for an open house I was practically running over there acting like at potential buyer.



Of course we started going back and fourth about what the asking price would be in this NY suburb. DH went low which was not low at all and I went considerably higher considering the schools and the town.

As we were walking one of our neighbors drove by and asked where we were going and we told him. "Oh you gotta tell me what they want for that thing when you get back!" he said with excitement.

Real estate is a funny thing. We live in a town where the houses go from modest cottages (like ours) to just a few blocks over Mc Mansions that need intercom systems to call every one to dinner. And in the end it's all about the school. I often say, "we didn't buy a house we brought a school."


Well, I'm proud to say I know my high end real estate. I priced it perfectly at 1.6 mil. Cra-zy. The house is gorgeous. Drool worthy. 4 bedrooms. Office. Great room with vaulted ceiling and stone 2 story fireplace. Basement ready to be finished as you like included in the price. I imagined a small theater and billiard room. The DH a 2 lane bowling alley. But still, 1.6 mil. I sure hope it sells. Will be great for my property value. Hmmm, must go and sweep the cottage steps.

Since it's Monday, that also has me thinking about dieting. I've been doing so poorly. So I'm shaking things up. I've been on WW forever and not really following it forever. Usually being done with my points by around 12:00. But instead of giving up on WW I'm shaking things up by going on core today where you eliminate the white products but get whole grains and fruits. It's more limiting than flex with the food choices but maybe that's what I need. Wish me luck. Let's see if I can make it till 3:00 today. Eek.


Oh, and once again the winner of the Liza Palmer Seeing Me Naked contest was Brown Girl Gumbo. See below and if you missed the interview click here. Liza was so inspiring. Thanks Liza!



Best,
Kwana

19 comments:

mrs. confidential said...

1.6 M isn't bad at all for new york especially if its only a few mins from the city! i';ve just been to another site where they have taken photos of spring flowers in bloom in NYC and i am beginning to miss it!

good luck w the laundry! i detest doing mine. i wait until i dont have anymore clothes to wear!!! hah!

Brown Girl Gumbo said...

Thank you again Kwana!! I can't wait to read Liza's book.

As for going to open-houses, I LOVE DOING IT TOO!!! Even though I am in no position to even think about buying some of the condos I go see, it's still fun nonetheless!!

I agree with mommythe, I guess 1.6 isn't bad considering NY's high real estate. Although it's WAYYYY out of my league! LOL!

Phyllis Bourne said...

Gorgeous house!

Good luck with CORE. I've been WW Lifetime for four years, but REALLY struggling the past few months. Maybe I'll give CORE a shot too????

pve design said...

What, money does not grow on trees? Oh darn
I feel like an old timer here, prices of "everything" have really gone up and it worries me as to the future of our children and if they will be able to afford to leave the nest. Then again, I think it is just history and it has always been like this, all about the ups and downs!
The market and an election year bring us into a time of change. Let's hope prices and the scales show some reduction. I know we would all like that, especially since summer is coming and "the living should be easy!"

N said...

Oh that house. I am so glad someone was paying attention and checked it out. Holy cow...$1.6! That's what they were originally asking across the street from us, you know. Which clearly hasn't happened. Though it's not nearly as McMansion-y as some of the beasts in town.

Here's my prediction: they hold that price through August, drop it for September house-hunters. Like we said, once people realize you can't get out of the driveway...

(And this is from someone who is messing with their cottage. No intercom, though.) :-)

Kristen Painter said...

Best of luck on the dieting. I'm right there with you!

Kwana said...

I guess you're right MommytheRobot and BG, but 1.6 still hurts.

Patricia I sure hope those kids leave the nest. They had better!

Good predictions N. Let's watch close and see what happens. Your renovations are totally bringing up the hood!

Thanks for the good luck wishes pbw. My dream is to be a lifetime member an dnot have to pay anymore!

Kwana said...

Thanks Kristen! Glad you've got my back.

Louisa Edwards said...

Good luck with the WW! I could never do that system; I can't remember what points to assign where, and I hate looking them up every time I want an apple or something.

sula said...

you go girl! I am a big believer in WW (thanks to following it, I lost 70 lbs last year) but you definitely have to work the system. The online tools were what really helped me. I'm on the net all the time anyways, so looking things up and tracking online was almost fun (almost). Let us know how you find Core. :-)

My Notting Hill said...

I guessed 2.2 and my husband guessed 1.6. Hate it when he's right. Although that seems a little low for outside NYC. Hopefully it's chock full of green, energy saving options.

Kwana said...

Thanks Louisa. I'll let you know how I do.

Sula! What an inspiration you are. 70 pounds is awesome. I'll let you know how core goes.

Notting Hill you are funny. Isn't it terrible when the hubbys are right? But you have to remember how real estate is doing right now even in Lower Westchester NY. I guess it was a little green but they were not touting it all that much. I'm sure the energy bills would be though the roof.

Carleen Brice said...

Nice digs. My hood is kind of the same: I'm walking distance from Habitat for Humanity houses and million-dollar mansions.

LitPick/Flamingnet Teen Book Reviews Blog said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Melissa Walker said...

Sounds good to me, compared to a 2-bedroom for that price in NYC! Man, real estate is all relative and I live in CRAZYland.

Kwana said...

Thanks for the comment Carleen. I totally get it.

You are so right, Melissa. It's cheap when you think of that. Even Harlem condos are almost as pricy.

Wendy Toliver said...

Wow, that house is gorgeous!

Kwana said...

Hey Wendy. It is isn't it? Drool worthy.

Eileen said...

Is this the house on Ashford around the crazy bend???

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