Through weeks of worrying about whether we would ever get to close on our old house, and more concern that we would find a manufactured home to suit our needs, finally we are renewing the neglected mobile home.
This home looked good in the few pictures that were shown. When we went to scout it out, we were happy that it was tucked away inside a small mobile home park in the middle of the country. How tranquil this would be for dealing with migraines, I thought. Jim and I both wanted this house on outside view alone. To be sure, we had looked at the few other options out there, but nothing thus far compared to this one. So we pestered the listing realtor for an appointment, but it took three weeks before we landed one.
Things are not always what they appear on the surface. You know the old adage of “don’t judge a book by its cover”. Yeah, that one. On the day of the appointment, we waited on the wooden steps with the realtor as dogs barked inside, and it sounded like yapping chaos. The scattered woman behind the door tried gathering the dogs while her mother, who’s a stroke victim was outside tending to a garage sale on the small patch of front yard. When almost twenty minutes passed by, the realtor announced that we were coming in.
I nearly fainted upon entry. The house had a terrible stench to it. Four dogs had run amok in this house, destroying the carpet and flooring. It was hard to see everything as it was in such disarray. And yet, we knew we wanted it. We made an offer on the spot.
When we took possession less than two weeks ago, we took stock of what we were up against. It was a sorely neglected house, but we knew with some tender loving care and repair, it could be transformed into the home it deserved to be.
This is what the carpet looked like: filthy and horrible smelling
One of the bedrooms. The spots on the wall were where a greasy head pressed!
The smell. Oh the smell! It stayed in my nostrils all day. No one could stay in the house for very long. We had the junk team come in and remove leftover furniture, dirty dishes in the sink, and clothes left wet in the washer just to name a few things. There was even dog poop left on the carpet!
Once the carpet was removed, however, the smell disappeared. Yay!!! And then came friends and relatives to help us out. They have been our life savers, each and every one of these kind, hard working people. For the last eight days, the house has been undergoing major freshening up. New paint is still being applied, flooring is going in. Carpeting will be installed on Friday. We can finally move in on Sunday. All because of everyone helping. Without them, this wouldn’t be possible.
Today was sunny for the first time we’ve been at the house. I was painting door trim, when I took a break and sat back in one of the camp chairs. All of a sudden, I saw it! I couldn’t believe my eyes! Beautiful Mt. Hood was visible from one of our family room windows. How I’ve always wanted a view of this mountain again! I had one for the year I lived in an apartment when I could see it if I stood at my bedroom window. And now, the mountain is right here framed in our window. Unbelievable. I couldn’t be happier. This mountain. No words.
Through the screened window, majestic Mt. Hood
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