I'm Still Here

I haven't moved yet, but things are moving along. I'll be glad to get this all over with. In the meantime, the apricots and early peaches are ripe. A couple of sisters and a niece came over today to pick some. The peaches should have been thinned, but I guess the new owners will do that next year. The apricots didn't have such a big crop this year, but they are bigger and are very nice. The apricots are Tilton and the peaches are FlavorCrest. I sure would like to find the Flavorcrest in an Ultra Dwarf size.
Here is a picture of my back yard at the MH park. I'm going to have that big Grapefruit tree taken out as soon as possible. I hope there will be enough room for the Ultra Dwarf fruit trees that I want to plant and also some Irises. You can't see all of the back yard in the picture. It's a little wider towards the road. It doesn't go beyond the Grapefruit tree though. We're not allowed to have fences, but we can have hedges if we want to. I think a row of fruit trees would be a good way to define my lot.
I just have to convince the manager that what I want to do is a wonderful idea. lol. I already have permission to have that Grapefruit tree taken out because it grew too large for that location.

Here's a picture of part of the front and the side yard. It's on a corner lot, which means lots of lawn, but that's O.K. There are automatic sprinklers and a man mows it for a very cheap price. It's a short distance to my sister's place and not far from the swimming pool. Summertime, and the livin' is easy. ONCE I GET IN.

The Waiting Continues

I should've been moved by now. There has been a glitch somewhere. At first I was told the delay is because the selling price of my house had changed. Now I think it's more than that. The not-knowing is driving me crazy. I sure would like to know WHEN escrow will close. I need more than a couple days notice. Now that I've gotten used to the idea of moving, I can't wait to get there. I don't think I'll miss the big back yard after all and after Maggie gets used to the place, I'm sure we'll be fine. I'm thinking of having a cat door put in for her. I know she'll like that.

My granddaughter has 'retired' her blog, "the Dairy Princess Diaries." It was sad to see that but it's understandable. Her life has moved away from the dairy and time to put all that behind her. I'm very proud of Mandy, not only for what she has accomplished but for her personal outlook on life after all the hurt she has been through. Mandy is a smart gal and I know she and her husband will have a wonderful life together.

Lackey Memorial Bench

When Ira Lackey died, people donated money to the Winton Historical Society in his memory. The Society wanted to do something special for the man who was loved by the whole community. My sister, Carolyn thought an indestructible bench made by Robert Isaac would be a good choice. A plaque was made with the words, "In Memory of Ira & Maggie Lackey." The dedication of the bench was yesterday. A good crowd of people attended, along with the 3 Lackey brothers and their families. Also nieces of Ira and Maggie. Speakers were Randy Heller, Rosalie Heppner and Judge Brown. Jim Lackey spoke on behalf of the Lackey family.
The bench was installed at the Winfield School on the corner of Walnut and Chestnut.
The Winfield School is built on property that was the homeplace of Ira and Maggie Lackey and where their 3 sons grew up.Pictured by the bench are the 3 sons of Ira and Maggie: Tom, Jim and Charley.
More pictures can be seen at flickr.

Big Changes Coming. . . .

Yes, I am expecting big changes to happen soon. My sister told me of a nice mobile home for sale at Rancho Grande, a 55+ mobile home park in Atwater. So, I decided to see what I could get for my house and consider making the big move.
The real estate lady came up with comps and told me what I could probably get for this place. I thought it was a little low, but knowing that property values are way down, I thought I could accept that.
That same afternoon, my real estate lady came by to put up the for sale sign. Right behind her was a real estate lady from another company with the daughter of a prospective buyer. The daughter was enthused and called the mother right away to drive up from Southern California to see it. Their real estate lady took pictures of the house, yard, everything. Evidently they put in an offer before seeing it in person. Noon the next day, the mother was here and told me she loved the house and hoped I would accept their offer.
It looked like everything was going smoothly. Then the appraisal came in at $4,000. under the agreed upon price. I was shocked. I thought for sure it would be higher than asking price!! We compromised on the price and thought things were back on track. But, oh no, the Underwriters have to start all over again because the price changed and I was told it could take up to 20 additional days. That is absolutely crazy!! What do they do anyway? What could possibly take that long?
The people I feel bad about are the owners of the mobile that I am buying. They found a place they wanted in another town, but now they are concerned about the extra time it will take to close escrow, first on my house and then on their mobile. If they lose out on that place they will have no place to go. This Domino effect is driving us all crazy!!
I really don't understand what could possibly take the Underwriters so long to look everything over.
In the meantime I am enjoying the ripe cherries. My last Hurrah!