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The Meaning of "AS IS " |
September 2007
April 2006
October 2005
August 2005
July 2005
June 2005
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July 23, 2005 Dear Friends and Family, Hello to you all from our farm in Hebron, New York! We are indeed here... and have been now for an eventful three weeks. Over all, we love it. All of it--the farm house, the land, the surroundings, the work, the people we have met, and the experience of being here together. At the same time, every step of the way has been and continues to be an incredible challenge! We packed up our Arlington home on Wednesday, June 29. The moving company came to take and store most of our belongings. After they left at 3:30 or so in the afternoon, we were packing our 14-foot UHaul rental until 11 PM. That evening, a bevy of angels simply appeared to help us along--Mike, Jan, and the cousins, Steve Lanou, Tim Bernstein, Nicole and Jack Libresco, and Margaret, Gary, and their gang. I have no idea what we would have done without them/you!! Thank you so much!! Thursday morning at 7:30 AM the buyers' representative walked through our Edmund Road house. We said goodbye to a place that has enabled so much, and spent the rest of the day doing errands around Arlington. At 6 AM Friday morning were on our way to a 10 AM walk- through, an 11 AM closing (during which Kyra, once again, fell asleep), and a quick lunch before returning to the farm house to unload our truck. That afternoon, the well stopped working (no running water), the telephone company never appeared to start our service, and at 8:30 PM, after returning our UHaul, we opted to stay in a hotel. After a 9:30 dinner, the kids--miracuously still awake and in good humor--begged us to swim in the hotel pool. How could we refuse?? After three days of dragging them from place to place?? At 11 PM we closed the pool and tumbled into bed. So much for our first night in New York! From there, our progress began. We knew we had purchased the property "AS IS," we just kept learning the different meanings of "IS." There was no way to lock the house, no screens for the windows, no room even close to move-in condition, and after hours on the phone, no way for Verizon to make our internet service work! We moved in anyway. Saturday night, we watched the fireflies on our hill competing with the starlit sky. We knew we were home. By Tuesday, July 5 we had (cold) running water, a toilet, and a phone, and were happy to enter the twentieth century. A week and a half later, we gave up on Verizon, called a local internet service, and were on line in 10 minutes! Hello twenty-first century!
Meanwhile, the process of demolition and discovery has continued. We have found wallpaper covering moldy walls, suspended ceilings catching buckets of rain, mysteriously sloping floors, insects of extraordinary shapes and sizes, and a few mice. Yet slowly slowly, we are bringing this place back to life. The rewards are huge. Not only are we learning how to do things we never imagined (plumbing, sheet rock, well maintenance, floor laying, etc., with the help of our friendly contractor), we are living a transformation, room by room. And every day we take a break, setting out to discover a new corner of the property, a new path around the neighborhood, or the next best place for pizza or ice cream. We keep looking back at how far we have come, and around at where we are, to gather momentum and inspiration for what we have yet to do! Yesterday was another milestone. For three weeks, we have been living out of a cooler, sleeping in one (large) room on the floor, collecting dirty clothes, and working working. Yesterday the moving company delivered the rest of our goods. Of course, we were not as ready as we had hoped (!), but last night Jordan and Jessica slept in their own rooms on their own beds. And we have a refrigerator, washer, and dryer! Phew. A living room and dining room. We are getting there...
Through it all, the kids are thriving--loving their adventure. Together with Kyra, Jordan and Jessica have been spending their days inventing worlds, making forts, exploring the farm, writing stories, drawing, reading, and helping here and there. Jessica and Jordan also had their first horseback riding lessons at a local stable (in celebration of Jessica's 8th birthday!). We have discovered a lovely place to swim, and have met a wonderful midwife who is taking excellent care of the little one to come. The little one is due to arrive August 3, but we are hoping that s/he takes his or her time. In all, there is something about this place, this land, that is gentle and generous. It is so refreshing to be surrounded constantly with such beauty. We are open to what we have yet to discover. We are thinking of you often and hoping you all are well. Stay in touch! We look forward to hearing from you! Our very best to you all, Kimerer & Geoff |
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