Take 3 is a summary of our last day out, which was two weeks ago. Between Gordon wrapping up his semester, me opening a show and getting through the end of the season at work, it's been a bit nuts over here! But now Gordon's on a break til June, so we've got some time to focus on the house hunt.
Condo #1
We started on a high note with this one. It remains the only property we've seen on our side of the Charles. The place was really nice! Didn't need a lick of work. We even liked their paint choices.
The location, on the other hand, was not great. Not terrible, but bus-to-T and not as frequent as our current bus-to-T setup.
Pros: In-unit laundry, move-in ready, plenty of on-street parking, quiet neighborhood
Cons: No dining room (which I didn't think would be a con, but in this layout, there was no where else to entertain- just a small eat in kitchen area), location not great
We went on a roller coaster ride with this property. We were told if we were interested, they were only accepting offers that Monday afternoon. We got such a great feeling about it, we jumped. We had no expectation our offer would be entertained. You can maybe see where this is going. Yes, our offer was accepted. And then we freaked out. Making the best decision for ourselves, we withdrew our offer. Gordon hasn't been able to really focus on this yet and the timing was terrible. Major things would need to start happening NOW and we were not ready. So we had to let it go.
Condo #2
This one was not great. Not really even good. Especially after seeing the first place. It's currently being rented and it's full of the tenants' crap. I didn't take many pics. Here's one:
I can't even remember pros/cons. We just didn't really care.
We went out again today. I'll be posting again later!
Condo #1
This building is a single-family home that was converted into two condos in 2003. If you ask me, this was a poor decision. The agent that was there to show the place was really trying hard. The place is currently being rented to students and it only emphasizes how crappy this "condo" is. Even if take out all their crappy stuff and cleaned it top to bottom, it would still be crap. The exterior needs some work as does the kitchen and bathroom (which has no window; kind of a dealbreaker for me!)
Pros: off-street parking, entire basement with one finished room, huge garage, great location
Cons: the whole place.
Final call: NO.
Condo #2
I liked this one. The square footage is not great, but there's a fair amount of storage for the space and there's a small office off the master. A big bonus: the kitchen was recently renovated and it's great!! I also got to talk to the woman who owns the other first floor condo and it sounds like the building is great. It looks well-maintained and cared-for. This is the first place I wanted to bring Gordon back to. I think it was the kitchen.
Pros: awesome kitchen, laundry in-unit with the possibility to move into basement for more room in kitchen, nice big master bedroom with huge closet, nice building, great location
Cons: street parking, right on busy street, first floor (Gordon is not keen on that), kinda small living area
Final Call: I may have to let this one go. I think the bad outweighs the good for Gordon.
Condo #3
This one is a three bedroom on the third floor. It's been on the market a while. I think it's because it's not in a great area. It's in the back of Mission Hill and Roxbury. Not terrible, but not *great*. For example, just two doors down, there are two big empty industrial buildings. All the agent could tell us was that there "might be" plans to turn those into condos. Hmph.
Other than that and the fact that the building had clearly settled in one area that caused a huge slant in the stairs and in the entry way to the condo, we really liked this one. Having a third bedroom would be a bonus (it was just slightly bigger than the "bonus" rooms I've been seeing) and Gordon liked that the bedrooms and bathroom were slightly separated from the open living area and kitchen.
(yes, we'd have a bit of painting to do)
There was a nice deck out back with sliding doors from both the kitchen and the living room.
Pros: great size, nice deck, good layout, decent sized kitchen, great price, decent location
Cons: iffy neighborhood, street parking, crazy shift in the building, NO LAUNDRY!, high condo fees, unclear how old roof is
Final Call: bad outweighs all the good here unfortunately. Pass.
Condo #4
We both liked this one, too!
Just a few streets away from #3, but a better neighborhood. Third floor unit with laundry, but it was squeezed into the bathroom which was already not huge. Kitchen was nice with a small pantry. Layout was kind of odd with the small living room in the center of the smaller bedroom and the bigger master with a big closet and office off the front. Another bonus was the space at the top of the stairs: since we're at the top, the landing area can serve as a sort of mudroom.
the view from the smaller bedroom through the living room to the master:
Pros: off-street parking, quiet neighborhood, everything in the building was updated in 2004, new kitchen, laundry in-unit
Cons: kinda small, at the top of our budget, litter box-where would it go?, no outside area to speak of, just didn't LOVE it.
Final call: just keep looking, just keep looking...
Today was a great outing. It was nice to have Gordon see a bunch of places so he can get an idea of what I'm seeing and I've learned a bit about what he'll get picky about. Turns out Gordon liked Condo #2 from earlier in the week a lot (the one with the epic back deck). But we didn't see anything we liked enough to buy. The search continues...
We have a few things on our "need" list:
- location: has to be near the T
- pet-friendly: self-explanatory
- minimum of 2 bedrooms: that's what we've got now and there's no going back.
- parking: off-street is preferred, we'd settle for plentiful on-street.
- spacious kitchen: mama needs a workable kitchen. The more room, the better.
- laundry: are we not adults?
- storage: part of why we've outgrown our current digs.
We've got other things on the "wish" list, like outdoor area, more than one bathroom (hey, we can dream), more than one floor. Hey, I'm thinking that getting everything on our Need list would be a beautiful thing.
Today I saw three condos, all in JP.
Condo #1
Your typical Boston three-story house. I think I'll be seeing a lot of these.
First floor unit. Lots of original details from the house (built c.1905). Kitchen renovated within the past five years. Off street parking. Close to the T. I think the downside to this one is that there's little to no storage. Seemingly small detail, but the only two closets are not big.
Final call: tough, but pass.
Condo #2
Second floor unit. Odd layout- a bunch of storage space for the square footage. Huge back deck and nice little back yard. Close to the Footlight Club and equidistant from two T stations. Downsides: laundry is in the basement of the adjoining building, so we'd have to go outside, down the stairs and into a padlocked basement door. Again, I ask, are we not adults? Also, street parking only which looks like it might be tough. Not good for Gordon. I think an off-street parking spot might be good for resale down the line.
Final call: again, tough, but pass.
Condo #3
I didn't even get a pic of the outside of this one. The pic in the listing was really nice, but deceiving. Generally, the building was not very well cared-for. The condo itself had an odd layout- laundry hookups in a tiny room off the master bedroom? Tiny room in the front not really big enough for a bedroom? Already wall-mounted 42" flat screen TV? Huh? The kitchen has been renovated, but it's small and the cabinetry was dark wood and made it all seem very imposing. Plus, they bought a fridge that was too small for the space under the cabinets, so it looks ridiculous. Basement not in good shape. No storage. All lies.
PASS.
All in all, a learning experience. If anything, condo #3 helped me see that I'm not excited about that particular neighborhood, so I can avoid it going forward.
I've already sent my realtor Norman 4 more listings to see. I'll keep you posted!
Doing theatre has its perks- we have friends who are real estate attorneys. How awesome is that? Ellie and her husband Ken have their own practice and Ellie recommended our mortgage broker, Matt, and realtor, Norman. Norman is Irish. Like, Irish Irish. He's a straight shooter and what Gordon said he liked about him is that he addressed both of us. He talked to me, because I'm the one who's had the contact with him and I'll be the main contact going forward. I'm not sure if you can imagine how refreshing that is. Throughout this process (as short as it's been so far) pre-approval letters and paperwork has been addressed to Gordon alone, even though I have been taking the lead with this. It's insulting! We're flashing back to the wedding planning process when the vendors would speak directly to me and ignore Gordon. Look, we're a team and we're doing this < insert major life change > together!
Anyhoo, he set me up with MLS notifications and I'll be contacting him to set up viewings for me! Here we go!!
In other news relating to the title of this post, today I made my first Green Smoothie. I've seen them all over the internet (*ahem* Pinterest!) and have been meaning to try one. Today being 90 degrees and all, I didn't feel like cooking breakfast after playing wii for an hour and a half. Perfect day!
I adapted this recipe by adding a tbsp of agave nectar, a handful of strawberries and blueberries that were on their last legs, a scoop of vanilla protein powder, about a third of an orange and a few blackberries (left out the nut butter, too). Not too pretty to look at, but it was tasty, low in calories and good for me, too.
Happy Marathon Monday!
Our dear friend Sara (AKA Pat) and her husband moved to Scottsdale over a year ago. Pat's an art teacher and she having a hell of a time finding a job in the Northeast. A friend of hers from grad school who's local to Phoenix tipped her off to a position and the rest is history. I was excited to see her (hadn't seen her since my October 2010 wedding!) and get a peek into their life in the Southwest.
Sarah came out to Boston Saturday afternoon because we'd snagged a great deal that included direct flights from Logan on JetBlue. The flight out was fairly uneventful- though we were both watching HGTV and then Friends. Sarah and I were in opposite aisles and we knew we were watching the same thing because every once in a while, we'd both lean forward to catch the eye of the other.
When we got in, Pat and Dan (and their dog, Jack!) met us at the airport and we followed them to our hotel- the super swanky Country Inn where apparently, the entire caravan of Arizona Bike Week participants was staying. Motorcycles as far as the eye could see.
Sunday we got up and braved the first of three mornings of chaotic hotel breakfasts and then headed over to Casa de McDermott to check it out and then to the Tempe Festival of the Arts. There was lots of cool stuff.
There was even a giant A on the hillside (the butte!) that I commandeered as my own:
After we walked around long enough to be hot, tired and hungry, we headed back to Scottsdale to find some food and ended up at the Pita House and yummy falafel and then checked out a few places in Old Town including this fabulous photo opportunity:
Pat and Dan:
Me and Sair:
I was trying to wink and be cute, but I just look like something flew into my eye.
( Cut for your pleasure... )
- Mood:
chipper
For some reason, Gordon and I happened to be in the area where my old family camp was, so I wanted to show him the lake and the house. We drove up and I thought that it looked different, bigger. I really wanted to show him the inside of the house, so I knocked on the door. No one answered, so I went in (hey, it was a dream. I wouldn't break in to someone's house in real life, ok?). Soon after we entered, the new owners pulled up outside, so we came out and apologized for going into their house and I explained that my family used to own it and could we look around? Yes, of course.
They show us in and while it looks vaguely familiar, it looks totally different. It's MUCH bigger. In real life, this house was tiny. A lot of us would stay in the house and to this day, I don't know how we all fit. So back in the dream, the downstairs was all renovated and there was big, pink, shiny tile throughout (I've been watching too many episodes of House Hunters. Clearly.). I was pointing out bits to Gordon. I saw in the wall where the stairs to the bedrooms used to be and told him how the adults would stay up playing cards, talking and drinking and how my cousin Megan and I would sit by the stairs (it was open like a loft almost) and listen to them.
The part that got me was that as we moved to the back of the house, we stepped out onto a deck that was part of the new owners' renovation and looked out to the area behind the house. When I was a kid, the only thing behind the house was a small creek that led to the lake that my grandfather would yell at us to stay out of (but that's where the frogs and newts were!) and lots of trees. Now, somehow, it had all been cleared away and there was development back there. A big field and somehow the creek had been moved (?). My immediate reaction was to cry. I felt such nostalgia and longing for the house and creek of my childhood. I just wanted to show Gordon this place that I loved and it really wasn't there anymore.
I suppose this might mean that I've got to let go of something. You can bet I'll be teasing it out over the next few days.
- Mood:
melancholy
This week on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon it's been Springsteen Week. He's got a new album out and all week other artists were covering his songs. Now, I've got my issues with Springsteen. Mainly that I feel he's being forced on us as an American Icon and I don't want any of that. But this particular performance gave me a little more respect for this song at its most basic. This cover, by one of my favorite musicians, is jazzy. It's thoughtful. It's lovely.
Please to enjoy John Legend and the Roots covering "Dancing in the Dark."
UPDATE: Via John Legend's FB page, you can download the song here. Enjoy!
- Mood:
mellow
On Saturday, I went to an early pilates class. OH YEAH and then I met Michael Ian Black. For the second time. FOR REALS. And this time I didn't blow it!!! At least, I don't *think* I did.
Background #1: TWELVE years ago, Steph and I took a trip to LA. On the way home, we spotted someone at the gate that we were *pretty sure* was MIB. "But that CAN'T be him!" we said. Keep in mind this was 2000. Post- The State, post- Viva Variety, pre-Wet Hot American Summer, just as Ed was breaking. Pets.com sock puppet time. But we were fans. We knew him, loved him. MIB ended up sitting diagonally in front of us on the plane. We commented on everything he did ("Michael Ian Black is using the airline-provided blanket!" "Michael Ian Black is doing a crossword puzzle!") But we couldn't talk to him! He just looked like he didn't want to be bothered. As the plane pulled into the gate at JFK and everyone started to grab their stuff and leave, Steph pushed me: "You HAVE to say something! You're the clairvoyant one!" (In her mind, "clairvoyant" meaning something like "good at communicating" or something) So here's how this goes:
Me: Um, excuse me. Are you MIB?
MIB: Yes.
Me: Oh my god.
MIB: ...
(Steph thinking: YOU'RE BLOWING IT!!!)
Me: Um, I love your work! I love The State! I think you're really funny!
MIB: Thanks. (turns around and grabs his bag and walks off the plane.)
After this awkward encounter, we end up standing mere feet away from him while we were all waiting for our bags.
So embarrassing.
So let's cut back to now.
Background #2: MIB has a book coming out called You're Not Doing It Right: Tales of Marriage, Sex, Death and Other Humiliations. He's doing a book tour and came to the Brookline Booksmith to do a reading. Well, my attendance was mandatory. Of course.
Sabrina, Gordon and I got in line outside the Coolidge Corner Theater in the rain. We waited patiently for almost a half hour and were let inside finally! We made sure to sit on the aisle so we could get out of there quickly and get in line for the signing (the signing was across the street at the Booksmith). He did a brief reading and then the rest of the time he took questions. It was great!!
After it was done, we ran across the street to get in line. Our speed paid off- we were 6th in line! But then I started panicking- it wasn't enough time to figure out what I wanted to say!! Should I mention our embarrassing first meeting that he surely has no memory of? Sabrina insisted because I'd regret it if I didn't and then I could tell Steph and Kristi that I did. These were good points. Someone from Booksmith came down the line and puts a yellow sticky note on the page of the book and writes the name of who you want the book made out to. I put "Nuts," naturally.
I get up to MIB. He looks up at me and smiles and says "Hi! How are you? Thanks for coming today!" My response: "Hi! Thank you!" Ugh. He looks down at the sticky and says "Nuts?"
Me, mumbling: "Yeah, it's a nickname my husband and I have for each other."
MIB: "Fair enough."
Then me: "Thanks for doing this!" Ok, now I was feeling like Ralphie when he told Santa he wanted tinker toys. So I stopped myself and then, just like Ralphie, spit the following out of my mouth:
"I'm so glad I'm getting the chance to meet you today because we actually met, like, 12 years ago on a flight." MIB: "Oh yes, that flight. I remember!" ha ha. I continue: "Well, it was on a flight and I recognized you but you looked like you didn't want to be bothered, so I felt bad and I asked you if you were you and then I said 'oh my god' and then I was totally embarrassed."
MIB: "No, you're lovely! I just get so weird on flights. really self-conscious. Someone will ask 'are you MIB?' 'Yes' and then people around me are like 'who is THAT guy? meh'."
Me: Well, anyway, I'm such a fan and a BIG fan of MATES!! I wanted to bring you a snack, but I couldn't find your favorite so far: Japanese Kit Kats.
MIB: OH, they're so good! But you can't find them here!
Me: I know! (at this point, I'm starting to walk on, because I'm aware of not taking a ton of time)
Me: ok, bye.
I felt like a fool, but Sabrina insists I did not make a fool of myself. She's a good friend.
But here's what he signed:
I love you, too!
After that, we waled down to Dorado Tacos and got tacos for lunch, just as MIB would have liked it.
If you'd like a more thoughtful and detailed account of the reading, check out Sabrina's blog.
- Mood:
giddy
The AMC movie theater on Boston Common does a Best Picture Showcase every year. This year's showcase was split into two days: Feb 18th and Feb 25th. I was away last weekend for MEHSIDENT, so I couldn't attend the first day, but that was ok with me as I only really want to see one out of the four they showed (That would be The Descendants. The others were Tree of Life, Warhorse and Moneyball.). That leaves us with five movies for yesterday: Hugo, The Help, Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close, The Artist and Midnight in Paris.
So if this were three years ago, I'd have seen all the Best Picture nominees! But it's not. So I didn't. But it's ok. I will see The Descendants soon. The others, meh.
Our day began at 9am. Sabrina and I met at The Paramount in Beacon Hill for breakfast. We both drooled over the delicious-looking pancakes, but opted for hearty omelettes instead. It was going to be a long day. After breakfast we stopped at CVS to pick up some snacks and it was off to the theater to settle in.
Here's the schedule:
This was a fancy lanyard that we were given upon check-in. It granted us in-and-out privileges all day. We also got a $5 AMC gift card. The tickets cost $40, which is really a good deal for five movies!
First up, Hugo in 3D. I loved this film. All I knew about this movie was that it had something to do with a kid and clocks. It was really wonderful. Visually stunning and a really nice use of 3D. Not gimmicky or in-your-face at all, but it was used effectively to reach out and bring you into the film.
Second was The Help. This was one of the films I wasn't too excited about seeing. I read the book and enjoyed it, but felt a little on the fence about the whole thing. As I suspected, I thought the film was very overwrought and filled with lines Academy voters love like "Sometimes courage skips a generation." UGH. There were good things about it; good performances. Was it really one of the best films of 2011? I'd have to say no.
It should be noted that we got 15 minutes between each movie.
Third was Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close. Another one I wasn't terribly thrilled about seeing, but I had read the book and was curious to see the film adaptation. I kind of hated it. Ok, maybe I didn't HATE it, but I really didn't care for it. There was a lot left out of the movie (expected) and way more 9/11 stuff played up (also expected, but unnecessary). As Sabrina called it, "grief porn." It was heavy-handed with the "Worst Day." It was certainly central to the story, but Jonathan Safran Foer managed to get the point across without slapping you in the face and making you watch Sandra Bullock cry incessantly. I also enjoyed Oskar's adventures much more in the book. Pass.
After that, we got a dinner break of an hour. Bill, Sabrina and I popped over to UFood Grill for a quick not-so-heavy dinner that hit the spot.
In between movies, someone from AMC was asking trivia questions and handing out prizes. They were also just giving away crap they had in their closets. It was ridiculous. There were The Devil Inside incense and gigantic banners. I turned down a lot of it, because, well, who needs it?!? But I did take home a fair amount:
Yes, those are recipe cards from The Help.
Sabrina went home with a Jack and Jill jump rope. We were all jealous.
Fourth movie: The Artist. I was really looking forward to seeing this one after all the buzz and it did not disappoint. It was just charming. Beautiful with great performances. I love that dog!! Go see it.
Last, but not least: Midnight in Paris. I also really enjoyed this one. Owen Wilson was charming and funny and Rachel McAdams got to play shrew for once. The costumes were fab and there were some great characters, namely Dali (played by Adrian Brody) and Hemingway (played by Corey Stoll, who you might recognize from TV).
This was a really cool experience! I would definitely do it again. I didn't get as restless as I'd feared and they planned out the order of the films really well. I highly recommend doing this if a theater near you offers it. Contrary to what you might think, I actually feel like I got something accomplished and now I'm so ready for the Oscars tonight. And who doesn't like free stuff?
And yes, Kristi and Steph, one of my recipe cards is for DEVILED EGGS.
- Mood:
accomplished
Friday night, we dreamed big:
A trip to the King Kullen.
We wanted to save some cash and cook some this weekend. Yeah. We ended up buying all the ingredients for this awesome-sounding oatmeal bake that Kristi makes and, well, let's just say that Steph now owns baking soda and brown sugar.
The three of us headed to Dragon Gate for Chinese. YUM. We shared apps (scallion pancake- THAT'S AN APP!!) and a Volcano (scorpion bowl).
On Saturday, we rejected all other activities including showering to get bagels. You understand.
We finished off Reality Bites (best movie ever) and decided Kristi would design a shirt that has Troy riding a melted cheese sandwich and the phrase "What's your glitch?" across the bottom.
A little outlet shopping and then off to Robbie and Kevin's for
PHOTOS UNAVAILABLE
We drank and played Taboo and played Dance on Broadway on wii (WHICH I TOTALLY WON ALL THE TIME AND NOW I'M GETTING A WII AND THIS GAME BECAUSE IT'S THE BEST). We got cold cheese pizza and took home a bunch of free dvds that they were getting rid of. We stayed there for SNL and laughed. It was the best.
Sunday called for sleeping in a bit because we'd been out so late. After that, we had more bagels and mimosas (*insert hand motion*)
and then headed to the salon where I got a manicure and Steph got a massage.
Those are mermaid tears right there.
There was outlet shopping and more pizza. There were Undeclared episodes watched.
And mustaches.
Blond Hulk Hogan style.
And there were eggs. Deviled eggs.
We always have a great time and it always goes too fast. I miss youse guys already!!!
- Mood:
nostalgic
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