We Didn't Go

We called off the showing. Deal breakers:

• Tiny bedrooms....9 feet by 9 feet is only 3 feet bigger than our bed. 9 feet by 14 feet is crazy. I would say 12x12 would be the very minimum for us, and the guest room needs to be a similar size.

• Tiny kitchen. The floor space was bigger than the apartment here but the counter top area was smaller. I need more, not less. No, I can't just put stuff "away", these are things I need out because I use them a lot....coffee maker, microwave, bread machine, place to drain dishes. Currently the place to drain dishes is the only room I have for cooking, which means I am either cooking and piling dishes in the sink, or doing dishes and having no room to cook.

• Old farm-house basement. I really didn't know anything about this until I looked it up, but basements were used as a root cellar and a storm shelter. Nobody did clothes down there. They were built with outer doors placed at an angle, which were opened so a delivery of coal could be dumped in. Updated old farmhouses usually have a laundry room on the main floor.

• No Internet. As I mentioned before, we figured out a second-rate work-around. Or shall I say, 3rd rate. We would be moving from 60 mbps to maybe 10 or 20. If that were the ONLY issue, it probably wouldn't have mattered.

• The abandoned factory and the railroad track. These weren't deal breakers, but they added to the list of issues. I've lived near trains before, but this is really close. Twice a day the train swings by through Hartford, past Walmart, through Rubicon, and then through Woodland, before heading up to Horicon.

To make matters more complicated, I was dealing with a health scare. For the last couple months I've been feeling tired, then I noticed I was having flushing, like hot flashes. Hot flashes? I had a hysterectomy 22 years ago. 20 years ago I had cancer, and chemotherapy. I had to sign a consent form stating that I understood a huge laundry list of possible complications. One of them was possible leukemia in 20 years. My dad died from some rare type of lymphoma at age 64. My first hubby died from colorectal cancer. My SIL died from liver cancer. 

I expressed my concerns to my doc. She ordered tests. "This one will check for leukemia and this one will check for lymphoma." she explained.

One test came back flagged as high. It shouldn't be high. It was high. True to my nature (no, I can never leave things alone), I started looking stuff up. Everything was telling me I could have something disrupting my pituitary gland, and they would be looking for a tumor.

>>>Freak out time<<<

I messaged my concerns to my doc. She called me. Yeah, she's a doctor's helper, who works under the guidance of a doc, she's great, and always takes time to address my concerns, and I call her my doctor.

So...I have a UTI (urinary tract infection) and my thyroid medicine is too strong, both of which could contribute to how I've been feeling. She put me on antibiotics, lowered my thyroid medication, and ordered a repeat of the hormone test. Apparently that hormone can go up and down significantly, so it takes several tests to confirm it is actually high.

If it still shows high, there are some more tests she can order. I have been referred to an endocrinologist (hormone doctor). Unfortunately I can't get in until the end of September. My doc assured me if I start having issues then she will get me in quicker with a phone call.

The good news is, hubby and I walked the Lion's Den trail, even took the stairs down the 900 foot cliff to the shore of Lake Michigan and back up again and I had no issues! I felt better. I wasn't tired or weak. I'm not getting the flushing as often, in fact, it seems to be disappearing. Being out with nature is good for me. Hubby and I love to walk together but the trails have been muddy. They are just now getting better.

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What are we looking for in a house? We aren't sure. We toyed with the idea of a condo or duplex, but are put off by the close proximity of neighbors and the fact that anything outdoors belongs to the association and is subject to rules. However, a larger home that has been turned into a duplex (2 story), is attractive to us because my daughter would rent from us. Of course, it must be updated. Old houses are notorious for having dangerous electrical wiring and faulty plumbing. Back to condos...we found out that getting a loan on one is more difficult. Not only must the condo itself be approved, but the entire condo association must be approved. Anything one owner does or doesn't do affects the whole community. Peeling paint is enough to get any loan denied, and one person's negligence could prevent another person's purchase or sale. 

Back to house hunting...