Four Weeks to Go!

The serious countdown has begun...since I last wrote, major events have continued to take place. As I last wrote, on July 31, I accepted an offer from a wonderful local family who love my house as much as I do. My brother, Cam, arrived the next day for what he thought was an Ashland visit...instead we drove to Portland and on Monday, August 4, I made an offer on a house that Amy and Beth, my realtor, had seen and knew, rightly so, that I would love. It is 100 years old, charming, 2 blocks from beautiful Laurelhurst Park and, though not intentional, only a half mile from Amy's house. She will rent her house and live in mine, with my dogs, her dog, and a roommate, when I am gone. Both houses have had inspections and are still in escrow; my house will close Friday, August 29 and the new house, September 2. I am packing most of every waking hour and have arranged for a mover and also for Josh to arrive from Idaho to help. Amy and I had a HUGE yard sale ten days ago and she is coming down again this weekend to help me. What would I do without her? And my friend Gail...we spent another 3 days at the cabin during the 105' heat we were having and increased our swimming time to 45 minutes in the lake. It was hard to leave, especially knowing this was our last time here together for a long time. I am experiencing waves of many emotions...panic, fear, overwhelming joy and excitement...Vanuatu, here I come!