Ok I am not well………. My temperature has been zooming up and down all weekend and today I feel like I have been kicked all over….and if the truth be known , I am feeling very sorry for myself.
I have stayed off work today and attempted to do something, but I haven’t got the energy. So I try to blog, but just can’t find the inspiration to finish posts about Parisien chic or my funeral arrangements! (NOT a good idea when you are feeling ill and wallowing in self pity! LOL!)
On top of that, my favourite programme ” call the Midwife ” finished last night and it has started snowing !!!
So I just sit in dreams of Paris, my next trip which is only 30 days away and make mental plans for when I sell my house. Maybe I can take a leave of absence and spend a longer time in Paris.
I finally got round to committing to an estate agent a couple of weeks ago and have had a few viewings. It’s a bit of a strain to keep the place tidy for potential viewers and I really wonder if it is worth the trouble. After all they are buying the house not the furniture.
It is interesting to see viewers go around and their reactions. One woman looked like she had a bad smell up her nose all the time, so she obviously doesn’t approve and another kept asking me “but where will my ( disabled) son sleep?” as if I knew! My two spare rooms both have double sofa beds, so duh…take your choice! Some people are very complimentary ( ” LOVE the feel of the place”) and some people pull the place to pieces. It is a good job I have a thick skin and am not really bothered if they like my taste in cushions, ( “ that pattern hurts my eyes!”) or the colour of the rugs, ( “they will soon show the dirt!”) I want to sell the house not the soft furnishings.
Although the decision to sell was a knee jerk reaction to the redundancy notices at work, ( jobs in my department are safe for the moment) the more I think about it the more it makes sense. I have my eye on a couple of retirement properties, which , as all my present neighbours are now over 60, it will not be much different than where I live now.
This local demographic is due to the fact that the local council , in an attempt to improve a failing local school, put my area in their catchment area. The idea being that middle class parents would send their kids to the failing school and raise the standard. But unfortunately all the middle class parents with children had other ideas and moved out and older couples without children moved in.
Anyway, i will leave you with this Facebook status from yesterday which made me laugh so much yesterday.
Love Denise
and a year ago it was international womens da and I was remembering the influential women in my life.
denisefrombolton 
My Mum’s favourite TV show is Escape to the Country. She is always amazed when people make more comments about the furniture than the house they might buy. LOL.
Hope you get well soon. Buggering off to Paris is so much easier when done in good health.
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That was quick Mez.. I thought they were asleep in Australia at this time! Do yo have
the Uk escape to the country or an Australian one?
I watch ” Escape down under” and always am puzzled when they are leaving, good jobs, lovely houses and wonderful family and friends behind for “a better life, for the children”!…… dragging their often unwilling children and /or spouses with them.
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That’s odd that you would be in your home when potential buyers come through – here, we leave the “home showing” to the real estate agent who has been engaged to sell our homes – when they do have an Open House, the home owner has to stay away until the showing is over! It would be uncomfortable for me also to hear negative comments from those passing through – things that are a treasure to me may not please others but they should refrain from saying so – especially with the owner right there!!! Good luck on selling your home – have you buried a statue of St. Joseph in your yard? It’s considered to be good luck in the US and I know many home owners who have buried him in their yard and sold their home right away!
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That sounds very professional and a much better way…..No, English estate agents leave it to the householder, unless the property is empty. I have tried to sell my house before so I am used to the negative comments, the time wasters, who are just here for a Sunday afternoon out. and people who gushingly “love, love it “, ” just what they are looking for “etc, etc, and say they will put in an offer and you never hear from them again! Often it is the most unlikely people who decide to offer.
The last time I found a buyer for my house, just before the property market collapsed about six years ago. The lady was single, had a whirlwind romance during the conveyancing period which takes a round three months and brought her new husband when we were nearly ready to complete. . He didn’t like the house so she pulled out!
I also think people sometimes are afraid to show too much enthusiasm because they think that will affect the price negotiations. I don’t know about the US but here we never pay the asking price, unless it is a sellers market, then it may be necessary to pay more.
Never heard of St Joseph. Maybe I will try to find one. Every little helps!
Love Denise
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Here’s a link explaining “burying St. Joseph” to sell your home
http://www.st-josephstatue.com/st_joseph.htm
It can be just a small statue – if you have trouble finding one, let me know and I’ll go to the religious store here and get one for you.
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Ahhh, I’m sorry you’re feeling so ill Denise, flu is horrible, so debilitating. It must be doubly awful to be ill and have to be polite to the people who are viewing your house! I agree with Sandy, the estate agent should be earning their corn and conducting the viewings when you and Michael are out but I know that’s not the way it is done here.
Hope you feel better soon and are looking forward to your American trip. Take care, love Janet
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Thanks Janet…..feeling better this morning.
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Your house is lovely – ignore them 🙂
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and feel better soon !
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Nice to hear from you Megan. I am always surprised that people read my blog.
Love Denise
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HI Denise. Mr French has been sick for three weeks now. And he gave it to my teen. The Dr says its an epidemic. Whatever it is, its nasty! Get well, soon. Really, really soon!
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Well I have to be well for April 11th as that is my next trip! I am sure I got this virus in Paris. It is the same as I had in January. Hope Mr French and your daughter are well soon. Love Denise
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Sorry to hear that you’ve been feeling poorly, Denise. I’ve been tracking your progress on FB and am glad to hear that you’re on the mend. Like Sandy, I find it unusual that you stay in the house while it’s shown. Our agent always told us when she was bringing people around so that we could leave. There has been a whole lot of advice written on how to sell a house in the States, including tips like putting a few drops of vanilla in your oven and turning it on so that the house smells like cookies. There’s a term (annuals, evergreens, ?) for people who are continuously looking for a house but never buy. I wish that I could remember the name because it amused me the first time I heard an agent use it.
Hang in there and get better soon. You’ve got another trip to Paris coming up!
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Thanks Mary Kay. Two days later and I am back out on my bike. I will try the vanilla trick. Love Denise
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