I have seen so many tiny houses, park houses, and park cottages in the past few weeks, I can’t get them out of my head. I have seen all of the color schemes, square footage switcharoos and learned that none of the model homes show you what the stripped down version looks like. When we were looking in Rockwall, I asked the salesman which models were built without “options.” He thought for a minute, but nothing came to him. I looked at the left side of the pricing sheet, which showed the standard items, and then the right side with the upgrades. I had what Oprah calls and “ahha” moment.
I could never live in an unadorned tinyparkcottage. I really want an inside bathroom and lights, which means we must order the elite platinum cottage; especially if we absolutely, must have glass in our windows.
I think we’re doing the right thing by opting for the larger, Riverview cottage. Even so, it will be an adjustment. The Riverview is about half the size of the small home we live in now…but its really, really cute. I think it will be fun to embrace a whole new lifestyle. Minimalism is my mantra…I must remember I’m now a minamalist.
This little piece of earth belongs to us now.
I have given this lesser square footage and lack of storage conundrum a lot of thought, and I have all the answers. I will attempt to list them in the order of importance.
Challenge: How will MG resist shopping at the thrift stores. I hear she brings something home nearly every day. Her tiny home will be overcome with handbags and cute tops in no time.
MG’s solution: I was reading the ads in the Lake Area Leader this morning and spotted the schedule for the local Thrift Store. In addition to “Pay by the Pound Friday,” they have “Thursday Trade Day.” I went by there this afternoon and checked it out. You can bring in three items of clothing, that are in good condition, and trade them straight across for another three items. I made an excellent trade today. I’m looking ahead to spring. Between now and then, I can go in on Thursdays and trade three winter things for three spring frocks. Goodwill is really going to miss me. Their prices have been going up, anyway.
Challenge: Will there be enough plugins in a park house for all of my devices?
MG’s solution: I know it’s a problem sometimes in the RV, but remember, you’ve got that adapter thing with eight plugs and it only blew the fuse once. You’ll be fine…what’s next?
Challenge: No desk, no personal computer, no full length mirrors or other good places to take selfie’s.
MG’s solution: ….Well, you will have friends in the neighborhood. They might let you reflect at their house.
Who are these people in my studio? Is that Pearl in my reflection? This is MG’s worst nightmare…
Challenge: That’s enough for tonight!! My tiny brain is tired. We’ve covered the more critical challenges.
Now…where are you going to keep your toothbrush? And your crowns…Where will you keep your toppers and tiaras? Will they go the way of the Beasterhop? He’s in storage isn’t he?
In the post I wrote on Saturday, I told you about our plans to see all of the model homes that Recreational Resort Cottages has at their Rockwall, TX location. Our purpose for going was to confirm our decision to purchase the the hybrid tiny home we had decided on, and to see different decorating ideas and upgrades. I also said in the blog that even though we were ready to order the combination Meadow View and Trinica… Sunday in Rockwall could change everything.
The day was beautiful…perfect for walking around and going in and out. Our friends, Ron and Barbara, came with us, which made it more fun. I had looked at the RRC Rockwall website which said there were forty models on the lot. We went through every one of them, and some we saw twice. It took us a little over four hours.
I was right. After we had seen it all, we changed everything. We saw some of the larger Park homes and the extra room appealed to both Kip and me. We wanted to stay true to our original tiny home plan, but we’re fudging a little. The plan we decided on has 604 square feet, which still qualifies as part of the new concept that is rapidly becoming a desired lifestyle of the active senior set. Many, like Kip and me, want to spend a lot of time traveling, but still have a home base…or two. Minimal upkeep, low utility bills, and low taxes are some of the good points. You are also forced to virtually eliminate accumulating things. There is limited space and storage, which makes you look at your belongings in a different way. Having said all of that, we are now leaning towards a few more square feet.
By Monday, we had definitely decided on the bigger Athens Park Home. At 604 sq ft, it would give us a little more room. We need the extra space…not for things… for three dogs and a cat. Unlike most tiny homeowners, we are putting ours on a permanent foundation. Since we own the lot, I doubt we would ever have a need to move our house. If we are able to buy a tiny home in North Carolina, we’ll probably lease a lot in a tiny home community. Kip says we will find a way.
Kip had to go to Athens Monday to get some information at the courthouse, so he stopped to talk to the salesman about the larger home. As luck would have it, they told Kip they are coming out with a new, tiny bit larger model that is still a one bedroom one bath home. They haven’t built the model yet, so I can’t show you what it looks like, but I can show you the floor plan. The covered deck will be 17′ x 10′, which should be big enough for our needs and we won’t have to build a second deck for the side door which will face the backyard. We’ll just need a small stoop with steps for the dogs.
I know what you’re thinking…justify, justify, justify.
We haven’t ordered the “cottage home” yet. The first model will be far enough along by the end of next week for us to have a look at it. The Platinum Cottage factory, where it is being built, is just a couple of miles outside of Athens. I now know different models are built at different factories. The Platinum cottages are supposedly the best. I’m going to be in AZ from Wednesday through Friday, anyway. The lot deed should be filed tomorrow, so we can start on everything that has to be done in preparation for the house and the RV port Kip is having built.
Meet the Riverview… We’ve made a few adjustments, but I’ll tell you about them in the next post.
Here are some samples of the colors we have picked out. After seeing so many different combinations on Sunday, we changed our minds on several colors and options.
The trim, back-splash, and farmer’s sink
The style of cabinets, but not the color. A movable island like ours will be, but the top will be the same as the counter-top. Our appliances will all be brushed stainless steel. It doesn’t show fingerprints.
We will have beams, a breakfast bar, and a pantry similar to these, but the color will be like the cabinets, baseboards and trim. The color block shown is pretty close, although all of the pictures are showing pretty dark on my laptop.
The wall that’s on the same side as the deck will look like this only quite a bit wider, and the ceiling will be vaulted with beams. This looks like the right trim color. The walls will be very light with a hint of buttercup.
The colors of the outside…the grey sample is the deck flooring, and the roof is copper metal. I can’t show you the style of the outside until we’re able to see the model next week.
I’m packing my hats, so I thought I would show you my latest find.
My brother, Billy is a stand-up guy. I admire him for so many reasons. I’ll try to think of a few.
He has countless friends because he knows how to be a friend. He stays in touch with people he has known since childhood, and has made many more good friends in the fifty years of his career. He devotes much time and energy making and keeping friends because he really does care. That’s the way he is. (Have I mentioned that he is retiring? Yes, the R is replacing BTW, OMG, and even…WTH?)
Billy has a great sense of humor. It’s different from mine, but that doesn’t make it wrong. He probably wouldn’t think this cartoon is funny. I think it’s hilarious.
How do you make a small fortune out of horses? Start with a large fortune…
Anyway, there are many more things about Billy to be admired. I have always envied his ability to remember details. He can remember numbers, names and stories. He never forgets a punchline. I can only remember short stories like this one:
Sam bought a horse. In its first race it went out 25-1. The only problem is that all the other horses left at around 12:30…Heeheehee
Hey, Billy! Is this your accountant?
Billy went to California the summer before his senior year of high school. Our uncle, Chuck Francis, got him a job parking cars for the Dodgers. Little did he know that experience would morph into a fifty year career. (Did you know he’s retiring?)
Billy is highly regarded for his knowledge of every facet of the parking industry. I can’t come close to describing his background, but I know he has saved companies millions with his consulting, management and auditing skills. Those in need are sure to miss him after 1-31-18. (As of 2-1-18, Billy will no longer have a job.)
Do you notice anything funny about the picture below?
Generic horse racing
A racehorse owner took his horse to the vet. “Will I be able to race this horse again?,” he asked.
The vet replies, “Of course you will…and you’ll probably win.”
Six days after Billy retires, he will be heading for Arizona to the Jones County reunion. I’m sure a good time will be had by all. I sure hope so, because I’m going to be there too.
I’m very sure that after the reunion, Billy will be spending most of his free time, (of which there will be much), entertaining himself with his favorite past-time…fishing.
One day two guys, Rob and Ben, were out fishing when a funeral service passed over the bridge they were fishing from. Rob took his hat off and put it over his heart. He did this until the funeral service passed by.
Ben then said, “Gee Rob, I didn’t know you had it in you!”
Rob then replies, “It’s the least I could do. After all, I was married to her for forty years.”
This post has all been in jest. I love my brother more than I can express. I know he would do anything for me, because he has. I know he’s a great friend because I have watched him be one. I know he’s smart, and funny, and handsome, because that’s what Mom told me.
We spent the day doing the fun part of planning our tiny home. We couldn’t decide between two plans. The Trinica…which has the wall of windows in the living room area and the center kitchen, and the Meadow View…which has the rustic look and wrap-around porch with the ouside fireplace. The Meadow View also has the larger bedroom. We finally talked to the guy at the Athen’s Cottage Homes who does the custom designs. He had obviously dealt with people like us before.
We ended up with a hybrid. We’re still in the planning stages, so we didn’t get an estimate yet, but we’re told we can flip things and turn them around without added expense as long as we stay within 399 sq. ft. The upgrades are the things that will add to the total cost.
OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA
The Outside will be along the lines of these photos, except the wall facing the outdoor deck with the fireplace will be a wall of windows. We switched the living room and kitchen around. The windows will look something like the photos below, only the front cannot curve out because that will add to the square footage. We won’t have the huge windows like you see behind the couch. The indoor fireplace will be there with a window on each side. The couch or chairs will be where the cabinets are on the left. Are you thoroughly confused?
We think we got a pretty good deal on the lot, so we have some wiggle room, but you know how it is? The devil is in the details. We will be building an RV port that will also have a garage for one car. There will be a charge to bring the water and electricity from the street to where it needs to be hooked up. (I know I’m not using correct terminology, but you get it.) We are going to build a privacy fence for the dogs, and we will have the expense of the concrete for the RV/garage and the foundation for the tiny home. This is beginning to sound like a big deal doesn’t it?
I’m trying to decide on the colors. I think I want the main color to be taupe with a lighter color on the walls. The ceiling will be stained wood. I like taupe a lot and it goes well with orange. You’re just looking at colors in the photos below..not the floor plan.
OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA
OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA
This Photograph Dianna took might be a good color palette for our tiny home.
The picture below will be the design of the kitchen, but since there won’t be a loft, the whole area will be high ceilings from front to back. The fireplace won’t be in the corner. The front door will be where the window is…unless we change our minds.
I’m sure I have confused you enough for one night. We’re going to see the models in Rockwall tomorrow, so some things could change.
I bought Kip his first gift for his first tiny home…A tiny orange fly swatter.
Things are happening to me that I don’t quite understand, but most of it is good. Today, our women’s group met at the The Victorian Tea Room to celebrate three birthdays. Helen had a birthday on December 5th, mine was on December 31st, and Barbara’s was yesterday. As usual it was a ton of fun. I am so grateful to be a part of this group of very special women.
Most of you know that I am going to attend the Jones County reunion being held in Mesa, Arizona in thirteen days. Most of the people attending are Murdoites who retired to Arizona. The added bonus is my brother, Billy, my 2nd Dad, Gus, and Valerie are going to be there too.
Typically, before I attend a reunion of any kind, I gain ten pounds and get a bad haircut, but this time is different. I never lost the last ten pounds I gained before the last reunion. It doesn’t matter, because I’m starting a lose ten pounds in ten days diet. I have three days before I even have to start it.
I did get my haircut yesterday, and its a little shorter than I like it, but short hair has it’s advantages, which I will tell you about in a minute.
It occurred to me that my new, shorter cut was similar to the cut I had when I was sixteen. A mere fifty years ago. Most people wouldn’t be idiotic enough to do this, but I’m going to do a side by side comparison. I haven’t even looked at them side by side yet, so here we go…
I hope this didn’t creep you out. I really did not intentionally try to copy my hairdo from fifty years ago. I remember that vest. I borrowed from my mother. It was three times too big for me, but it was orange. Even though you can’t see it, I have orange on today. When I came home from the party, I changed into an orange top. This was before I went hunting for my sweet sixteen pic. Aside from those comparisons, much has changed.
In the SS picture, I was growing out my “Connie like” hairdo. Not because I was finding my own style. It was because Connie, who was two years older, was growing her do out. The sixty-six year old me opted for the shorter cut, after several years of medium length hair, because it’s easier to color the grey every four weeks. It also costs a lot of money to get it cut more often. We don’t have a Harold the barber here. He somehow knew exactly what to do. Maybe he got the word that as long as my hair was similar to Connie’s, I would be happy.
Some might worry about themselves if they referred to their past lives as much as I do, but I don’t get too concerned. I’m Loretta’s daughter and nothing can change that. My brother is also her son and he will tell you he has all of her “better” qualities. I wouldn’t trade either of them… and Gus is certainly a keeper.
Enough of the past, for now. Here’s an update on the tiny house progress. (Little did Mary Francis, the younger, know that someday she would be living in a tiny house in Texas. I don’t think she would have understood.)
Kip made an offer on a lot today and the owner accepted it!!! He is supposed to call later to give us the information so we can get it under contract. I’ll tell you more when we seal the deal. I can’t tell you how relieved I am. I’m afraid I haven’t been as nice as I should have been about pursuing this idea I agreed to. A friend at the luncheon today told me she knew it would all work out because too many things had already fallen into place. That was what I needed to hear.
I’m sure we will have a lot of fun and nurse a few headaches putting all this together, but I’m getting excited about this new adventure.Does anyone know anything about the cabbage soup diet? It sounds yummy.
My name is Pearl the dog and I live with Pearl the human. If she finds out what I did, Pearl the human will be fummin.
We live in an apartment above a grocery store. It has a lot of rooms for a canine to explore.
There’s a room way down the hall that has a cat inside. I know cause it’s called the cat room, where cats must like to hide.
Today, the door was open and I went to have a look. I sniffed in every corner and nosed in every nook.
I tried real hard to find a cat. I really was dog bent. I smelled high and low and everywhere, but didn’t find a scent.
I heard someone approaching so I hid behind the door. I felt like such a bad dog… like I’d never felt before.
Guess what happened next? I should have never wagged my tail. I bumped the door and it slammed shut. Now the cat room was my jail.
Would someone come and find me? If I barked would someone hear. The more I thought about it, the more I shook with fear.
I heard a human walking by. I couldn’t find my bark. I really wanted out of there. I get scared when it gets dark.
I saw the doornob turning. The door came open just a crack. Would I be in the dog house cause I had planned a cat attack?
I closed my eyes and waited. I soon would know my fate. Would I see kindness in their eyes or be penned up in a crate?
I heard a phone a ringin. Someone yelled, “Pearl it’s for you.” She turned and left to answer it. Now what was I to do?
The door, still slightly open, gave me a great idea. As I nosed it open wider, I heard a cat’s voice say…”I’ll see ya.”
When I got to Pearl the human’s rooms, I turned to look for just a minute. Pearl was headed for the cat room. I was glad I wasn’t in it.
“Why would you want a tiny home? You’re not tiny and you have three dogs and a cat…and you have Kip, who has to have a 60″ television screen. How ever will that work out?” I only have one thing to say. “You are “The Limit.” (That’s Mom speak for you are 100 percent nuts.)
No, that’s not my mother talking to me. It’s me talking to me. I got up there in my head again and tried to make some sense of things.
Oh look…a tiny crown
“Make sense? You sold your small house. I thought you loved that house. Well MG, you agreed to this. The decision has been made and there is no looking back. Onward you go. Don’t even try to make sense, because it’s too late, baby, it’s too late. There’s no time to hesitate.”
Will I ever have a full length mirror again?
(Please make her stop.)
“Now…go out there and make it happen! The right lot is out there and you will find it. It might take a while, but there’s nothing to worry about. You have the RV, silly. You will not be homeless.
Oh, jeez…are you crying over brick and mortar or are you catching a cold. It’s probably just allergies.”
(I just had to get that out.)
At times a new perspective is needed in order to take a fresh look at situations and see missed opportunities or solutions. What do I need to see this through and not stress over every obstacle that arises?
I need to find peace and courage. I was put on this earth to be me. I’m adventuresome, right? I will step forward in faith that Kip and I will find the right lot, the right tiny house, and all the while, stay in our right minds.
We have established that in order to find a lot to put our tiny house on, we will have to look in an area that is not inside the city limits. The evil cities are responsible for the rules that banish tiny homes to the outskirts. To the county we must go. We will buy our tiny piece of earth someplace that is not too far out. Maybe it will have some lovely trees and be in a secluded, but not too isolated area. It’s out there just waiting for us to find it.
It will be a snap for us to move. We were smart to clear out all of the closets and get rid of all the things we no longer use. I have no doubt that we can be very comfortable living in a tiny home….if… we don’t continue to collect “stuff.” All of our belongings will have to take up as little space as possible. I can’t tell you how much I am enjoying our house since we cleared everything out. I’m going to be a very happy minimalist who will have lots of time to kick back and enjoy life.
Mom always said, “Don’t spend your life chasing that last bit of dirt around the corner. Your house will be there long after you’re dead and gone and your hard work will be for naught.”
Mom made a lot of sense. I should let her get up in my head more often…especially now.
There is something I have been wanting to share with you and tonight, I feel like writing about it.
I have been thinking about Connie’s Story and how it evolved. I started to recall the times I had admired someone else and/or their things and wanted to emulate them. You might think I’m psychoanalyzing myself and you could be right, but I doubt I’m the only person who has struggled with finding their own identity. My first memory of admiring someone else’s style was when I was five years old.
I wanted Lois Lillibridge’s shoes.
I borrowed them and I loved them so much I couldn’t bring myself to give them back. I asked her if she wanted the pink canvas shoes I had and she said, “No.” Then an awful thing happened. Her dad died and Lois and her mom and sister were moving away from Murdo.
Picture below:
I’m sitting on the far left. I’m wearing a white blouse and shorts. Lois is sitting in front of her mother, Marce. My mother is next to Marce, on the far right. She is wearing a dress with a white collar and red shoes. Lois and I are wearing identical white shoes. We were both supposed to be flower girls in a wedding, but Mom said we weren’t going so they got somebody else. Then Mom changed her mind. I got to keep the shoes.
That was a game changer for me. Did I take her shoes back to her? No, I didn’t. I remember as if it was yesterday, taking my pink shoes as close as I could to the moving van parked in front of their house. I never went back to see if she saw them and took them with her, but my conscience wasn’t happy with the rationalization I had come up with, and I never could wear the shoes I had coveted and kept.
Through the years, I spread my coveting around. I thought “so and so” had a better family, nicer house, or…excelled at things I thought I never could or would. It wasn’t until I wrote about Connie in the Murdo Girl stories, that I discovered part of the truth.
“Everyone has their cross to bear.” Mom always said this when I complained about some family problems I thought none of my friends had to deal with. I thought I was the only one in the little town of Murdo who didn’t have the perfect family…
I was wrong and Mom was right.
The fact that I wanted to be “Connie like,” makes so much more sense to me, now. Connie Jackson was an unassuming high school girl who didn’t need the idolatry of anyone else to validate who she was. Looking back, I realize it wasn’t her clothes or her hair that I envied. It was the fact that she didn’t need the attention from people like me. That’s what drew me to her.
We all have our strengths and weaknesses. Some have a strong sense of self and don’t appear to be at all confused about who they are. Other’s self-worth is totally dependent on the admiration of everyone in their world.
Writing Connie’s story was a very enlightening experience for me. I wrote about my desire to be “Connie like” long before I wrote the book, which is about a little girl named Hope.
Connie Jackson’s brother, Eddie, wrote stories about the experiences he and his sister had while going to a country school and what it was like to move to town when Connie started high school. Many readers loved the true experiences he wrote about. I graduated from high school with Eddie, but hadn’t seen or talked to him for over forty years, before we collaborated on the book.
Writing Connie’s Story affected me in another way I hadn’t expected. I recently re-read the book and I felt all of the emotions Hope did. She experienced feelings most people struggle with…fear, loneliness, confusion and the sadness that can eclipse happiness and security. Hope didn’t know who to trust. She didn’t know what a happy family looked like, but in the end she got exactly what she needed. She was one of the fortunate. She recognized the good in her life didn’t have to be like the storybook version.
There are other ways Connie’s Story parallels with my story. Hope lived in Murdo, SD…my hometown. Her grandparents lived south of Highway 16, as did mine. There were two apartments above Sanderson’s Store which in real life was owned by my Grandfather and then my Uncle, Jeff. The businesses on Main Street were as I remembered them when I grew up there.
I had a Great Aunt Grace who kept her little black flats on with a wide rubber band. She never lived in Murdo. I’m grateful I got to spend some time with her after we moved to Texas. Uncle Jeff Sanderson told me she lived in Dallas and I must look her up. Grace outlived her husband, son, and daughter. The only family she had left was her grandson.
Aunt Grace was a hoot! Like her sister, (Grandma Mary), she wasn’t more than five feet tall and weighed less than a hundred pounds, but she remained strong in spite of and because of all she had endured.
Many Connies have shown up in my life. My grandmother on my dad’s side was by all accounts a strong and wise woman. Her name was Constance Abbie Francis. She became a widow when she was in her thirties and was left with a couple of hardware stores and three very young boys. My cousin, Abby, (spelled differently), was named after our Francis grandmother, and I was named after both of my grandmothers…Mary Sanderson and Constance Francis. Constance is my middle name.
Content Abbie Bottom Francis Bowers. (she changed her name from Content to Constance
Mary Tyrrell Sanderson
A few years after Mom died her sister, Helen, passed away. Her daughter shared with me that one night, she heard her mother having a conversation with my mother. Helen kept opening the door to let the angels in and out. My cousin also said she had heard her mom talking to someone named Connie. After reading Connie’s story in my Murdo Girl blog, she asked me if there was a connection.
Mom (Loretta), with two of her sisters…Ella Leckey and Helen Haverberg
Could all of the Connie Angels be merely coincidences? I will let you come to your own conclusions, but I believe Connie’s story evolved as it did for all of us to learn from. I don’t write like an expert. All of my thoughts and feelings don’t transfer into words as readily as they do to more experienced writers, but I have learned about myself and my beliefs by sharing my stories with you. I owe you all a debt of gratitude.
There must be a strong bond between those who have passed before us, and those who are still living, that cannot be broken. We can still feel the comforting connection to those we won’t see again in this life. Whether they are family, friends, or people we never knew… If they had a profound and positive effect on our lives, they will remain in our hearts forever. Likewise, we can hope that we will live in the hearts of those we have spent our lives loving. We are forever connected, forever family, forever friends.
How do you make a small fortune out of horses? Start with a large fortune…
Love you!
I’m sure I have confused you enough for one night. We’re going to see the models in Rockwall tomorrow, so some things could change.
Enough of the past, for now. Here’s an update on the tiny house progress. (Little did Mary Francis, the younger, know that someday she would be living in a tiny house in Texas. I don’t think she would have understood.)
Does anyone know anything about the cabbage soup diet? It sounds yummy.
Those 70ish Girls 