The final post.

I don't know if anyone is still following this blog since it's been so long since I posted here, but I'm gonna make a final post anyway.

Throughout those years of layoff's, unemployment, and bankruptcy, we refinanced the house, along with a loan modification. After a couple years of dealing with it, we took a long and hard look at where we stood with the house. The interest rate was much lower, but the modification had taken us back to square one on the loan. We had paid 13 years on the house, basically for nothing. All of those years didn't count at all.
 We talked for well over a month, and decided to simply relinquish the house to the bank and walk away. It was a very hard decision, but we decided that it was for the best. Besides the issue with the house, we really didn't have time to care for the property anymore. Lisa works and goes to school, and I work six days a week at the farm. One day off a week simply wasn't enough time to take care of things there, and also try enjoying life by doing other things. Three weeks before Christmas, we made a huge change and moved into a twinplex that belongs to my boss.

 So now, I not only work for this man, but I'm also a tenant. Honestly, it has more perks than staying at the house. The rent is much less expensive, I live literally 100 yards from the west corn field at the farm, and we're four miles closer for Lisa's school and work. I'm already the rental maintenance man, so if anything breaks, I get paid to fix my own stuff. I get paid to plow the snow of my own driveway, and to mow my own grass, both with the owner's equipment. Our gas bill for December was 1/4 of what it would have been at the house, and the electric bill was almost half. This really was a smart move for us. Yes; it's very sad to leave everything behind; but we made the decision to move on and start over.

The farm still keeps me busy six days a week. I've not only picked the majority of the 20 acres worth of field corn, but I've bagged it on the ear and shelled non stop for the past six weeks. We decided to not use the corn crib this season, so every bit of it goes into 50lb bags. It seems that it will never end, but it will. The market takes 750lbs each, ear and shelled, once a week or more; along with 25-30 bales of straw a week. Add that to my duties at the market in the mornings, and any maintenance work that comes up at the 22 rentals, and I'm one really, really busy guy. Even if we were still at the house, I wouldn't have time for all of the things that we did just a few years ago that inspired this blog. I miss it a lot, but someday I will get back to all of the things that I was doing.

 I guess this is the part where I say goodbye to the blog, and to those who had read and followed through my adventures. I'm not done. I'm merely on hold for a while. Until then, love what you do and do what you love.
Chris.