Dream House

July 4, 2009 : 11:01 PM
We had been looking around for a new property for an office/clinic, and something perfect has become available nearby. It’s a model house with an attached office and another small building, that’s in foreclosure. There’s a large parking lot, lots of land, and it’s not far from the station or the shelter. Since we only have one small parking space in front of the shelter, it would be great to have the additional parking for guests, not to mention the events we could host there. And the little building in back would be perfect for our clinic! We’ve heard that the bank wants a fraction of what it’s all worth, and adding monthly payments to our budget wouldn’t be a problem because we could stop renting the school building. However we have still not received word on our permanent visas, which we would need for a bank loan (on the slim chance that we could even get one, as foreigners), and the personal loan that we took for the place we are in now doesn’t finish as soon as we thought it did. We hate to miss the opportunity to get something so ideal for us, and are hoping against all odds that there is some possibility that we could find a way to make it work.

Takako arranged for a chance to haul some stuff to the dump tomorrow, so David and I will be moving things out front today in preparation. David started yesterday while I was teaching classes, and I’m not sure we have any space left to put more out there today! We would love to completely clear out the big shed that we’ve been keeping a lot of this stuff in, so that we can use it for something practical. The roof has a couple of holes, which need to be repaired, but it has a large concrete base (and you know how we love concrete!). It’s also just a good feeling clearing stuff away. We try not to buy things that will be hard to throw away, but heaters, washing machines and fans break down. There are some inherited items from the previous owner, such as old rusty hurricane shutters and metal shelving, along with items none of us seems to have any memory of putting there. It’s been building up for a while, so we’ll need to make several trips to the dump.

We also need to continue adjusting the kitten room, as the weather warms up and the need for space increases. We’ve moved a couple of secure cages into the kitten enclosure for some of the small kittens to stay in, as the mesh has not proven to be a perfect solution. They are ingenious at finding any gaps, and it seems to have become a new game! Once out, they quickly want back in (not as easily achieved, somehow). We can’t let them out to play in the enclosure without constant observation, now. There has got to be a way to create a secure play area for them, so we’ll continue the effort. Here are pictures of the new mesh we put up…