I just heard...

that our buyer's buyer got the loan approval. So it's really on!! Their settlement is October 19th.
I have been waiting for this to start getting things done.

The Help

Last week I read this book. I really liked it.

Here's an overview from an ebook store.

Twenty-two-year-old Skeeter has just returned home after graduating from Ole Miss. She may have a degree, but it is 1962, Mississippi, and her mother will not be happy till Skeeter has a ring on her finger. Skeeter would normally find solace with her beloved maid Constantine, the woman who raised her, but Constantine has disappeared and no one will tell Skeeter where she has gone.

Aibileen is a black maid, a wise, regal woman raising her seventeenth white child. Something has shifted inside her after the loss of her own son, who died while his bosses looked the other way. She is devoted to the little girl she looks after, though she knows both their hearts may be broken.

Minny, Aibileen's best friend, is short, fat, and perhaps the sassiest woman in Mississippi. She can cook like nobody's business, but she can't mind her tongue, so she's lost yet another job. Minny finally finds a position working for someone too new to town to know her reputation. But her new boss has secrets of her own.

Seemingly as different from one another as can be, these women will nonetheless come together for a clandestine project that will put them all at risk. And why? Because they are suffocating within the lines that define their town and their times. And sometimes lines are made to be crossed.

In pitch-perfect voices, Kathryn Stockett creates three extraordinary women whose determination to start a movement of their own forever changes a town, and the way women-mothers, daughters, caregivers, friends-view one another. A deeply moving novel filled with poignancy, humor, and hope, The Help is a timeless and universal story about the lines we abide by, and the ones we don't.

I felt that some of the attitudes in this book could be prevalent today. Of course the whites vs. black still exists but also the employer vs. employee attitudes. Or rich vs. poor... Or old vs. young...

Why must some people think they are better than others? Being raised that way is not an excuse. What do you think?

Italian Consulate

Last Thursday we made our last trip to the Italian Consulate in Philadelphia. I applied for my passport which should arrive next week. We also filed our repatriation papers and another paper we need to live in Italy.
We have been going back and forth to the consulate for 4 years. Unfortunately, the consulate may be closing next year.
Another thing off the mental list!

Entry Light

I almost forgot to post this photo. This is the light that hangs in the entry. We have had a one bulb Temporary Construction Light Fixture.

Like this one (since 1995).

I think the new one is so pretty and it throws a lot of light! Although, we have not come into the house when it is dark to see the whole effect.

More work photos

We have a new doorbell! Actually we had a "doorbell" before but it was never wired up to a "bell". We let my mom pick from the 2 sounds since she is the one that has to listen to it! She picked the ding dong sound. The other one was a westminster chime. Not one I want to hear alot.

The King put on a new door to the garage. The original door started rusting and when we redid the sidewalk we had to take the bottom of the door off. It looks nice. The half circle window lets pretty much light into the garage. It also matches the half circle windows on the front of the house. The King painted it white. Looking good!

He also hung the 3 outside lights on the back of the house. They are a little 70's looking! But they through a lot of light!

What's been happening!

We have been so busy. I am homeschooling Litle P until we leave. She started on Sept. 1st. So far it is going as expected since we are using the same program as last school year, K-12 thru Agora Cyber Charter School.

The King has been busy working on the house in his spare time. He should be closing out the business in the next week or so. We still have not heard if the buyer's buyer got their loan. Does it always take so long??? I guess the bank does not care that other people are waiting on them to ok the loan.

The rebuilt deck....

This is the back yard where the bird pen was and a burn pile . All gone. It won't be long until the grass (or weeds) start growing.

Update

Well, we are still waiting to hear if our buyer's buyer got the bank loan. I cannot remember it taking so long when we got bank loans. I hope that we find out by next week.
On Sunday, The King installed the light in the entryway. It is so pretty. My camera batteries died. So as soon as I get into town and buy more I will post a photo. Yesterday, he installed the new doorbell. We have been living here for many years with a doorbell with no sound connected to it. Now we have one, weird!
We finished the deck railing. Now we have to stain it and that is done. He also cleaned up the yard where the birds lived. It looks really nice. Our friend came this morning and took the scrap away. Another couple of things off the list.
I have so much to do but I can't until we get a settlement date. I am starting to run out of patience. Litle P started school on Tuesday so we have that to keep us busy.
I cleaned out the cabinet over the stove this morning while she was doing schoolwork.
Time is fleeting!