My Kitty Is Stressed; Me, Too!

I've lived where I have lived in Columbus, Ohio, for the past 15 years.  I think it is twice as long as I've ever lived anywhere else in my life.  But, sometimes life shifts and things happen (or don't) that are just out of your hands.  And, I think it is time for a change.

So, I've put my home up for sale.

Now, I am the first to admit that I am not a tidy housekeeper.  No, I see no need to ever vacuum any carpet every day.  (And, you know who you are that I'm talking about.)  I tend to do that chore when I see that I can make a difference.  I have another friend who lives in a spotless home.  No matter when I have visited her place, nothing is ever out of place.  I can never say that I live that way.

In the past year, I have screened in my balcony and painted more than half the condo.  I had no intention of moving when I did that.  But, it has helped the overall look of the place.  However, that wasn't enough.  I have discovered so much more that needed to be done before putting the place on the market.  It has required 12-hour workdays most of this week.  I am sufficiently exhaustapated.

My friend with the spotless home has baseboards that glisten white.  I couldn't say that about my place.  So for starters, I scrubbed them with her recommended brand of cleaner.  It was an improvement, but there was no glistening.  So, I decided to paint over them.  And, once I got started with that, I touched up all doors and cabinets in every room.  I even pulled everything out of my kitchen cabinets (and I can't believe how much stuff they contained) so I could paint the interior of the cabinets.

I kept finding more to do.

Now, like I said, I do vacuum the carpet when I see that it needs it.  But, as I painted around the baseboards, I realized that I never used the attachment to get into the crevices where the carpet meets the baseboards.  Never, not once, ever.  Well, there was an astounding amount of crud to be swept out of there.  While doing that, I thought that I better raise my blinds (which I never do) and see what there was to see.

Oh, my!

There were dead bugs, dust balls, and multiple cracks in almost every windowsill.  So I swept, scrubbed, spackled, sanded, and then slathered on some much-needed paint.  It's one of the things that I have learned to do as a homeowner.  I must say, they look so very much better.

I cleaned windows (a very rare activity in my life) and thought I was done.  Well, I have a very good realtor who came over to inspect my work.  She always has a "to do" list of chores in addition the extra plants and pillows that she assured me my place needed.  When I finally thought I was about finished, she stunned me with one more thing to do.  Clean the ceiling fans.  That has never once occurred to me ever in my life.  Fortunately, someone shared an excellent hack that made the project a breeze.  I used an old pillowcase to completely cover each blade.  When I pulled off the dust, none of it fell to the floor requiring additional cleaning.  That was not wanted since I had already vacuumed and shampooed the carpet.  All that dust was tossed into the laundry.

There were things that needed to be accomplished that I couldn't do.  I never touch electricity.  I learned my lesson about that when I lived in Belgium.  I rewired a lamp, which I didn't think was so hard to do, and blew out the electricity in half of my home.  No, I don't touch electricity.  But, I needed someone to take down an Art Deco chandelier and two Art Deco sconces that were not about to be left at my place.  My realtor knew a guy and the price was reasonable.

Getting the fireplace (which uses both gas and electricity) tuned up was nowhere near reasonable.  It had to be done.  It hadn't worked in years.  It does now for the shocking price of $630!  There is nothing to do at times like that except pass over your credit card and, possibly, cry yourself to sleep that night.

So, where in all of this does my kitty get stressed?  Pets are not a real plus when selling a home.  And, I have a bit of a special-needs cat.  No other cat ever taught him to cover his poop when he goes in the litter box.  I have to do that.  (Ugh!)  Worse yet, he prefers to pee on the bathroom floor mat right next to the litter box -- and his aim isn't too accurate.  It could be worse.  I'm glad it is in the bathroom.  I can just toss the rugs in the laundry.  It would be much worse if he did this anywhere else in the home.  I must confess, his toxic pee corroded some of the baseboards in the bathroom over the years.  But, now they glisten after sanding and a fresh coat of paint.

The home goes on the market tomorrow and there are Open Houses the next two weekends.  Every time anyone come to the place, the cat goes in his carrying case and we flee the home.  (It is stressful for both of us to get him in that case.  He hates it and fights tooth and plastic-covered claw on every occasion.)  However, before I exit the place, the litter box goes in the garage, the pee-soaked bathmat goes in the wash, and a good dose of Mr. Clean goes on the bathroom floor to, hopefully, get rid of the smell.  I also have two plug-in air fresheners at work in the bathroom.  

I don't know what to think about the possibility of selling.  I am in one of the best school districts in the state.  That's certainly a plus and my condo is spacious.  And, it is the right time of the year to sell.  I've placed a bid on a home I love elsewhere, contingent on the sale of my place.  The bid was accepted and I have till the end of March to make a sale.  I don't know what to expect.  If it sells, I uproot my life and start over.  If it doesn't sell, I will take it as a sign that I'm to stay put.  I must say, I really found a wonderful home for my relocation.  But, I'm not going to share anything about it until I know if it really will happen.

Until then, my kitty and I will be stressed and waiting,