And Then Life Throws You a Curve Ball...

My eldest son didn't get the house I mentioned. When you find a deal - and you're 100% certain it's a deal - you've got to jump on it. He was about sixth in line so no house. Such is life.

Then we got a call about Sweetie's 96-year-old mother. She was hospitalized after turning yellow and becoming very lethargic. Long story short - she has pancreatic cancer which will not be treated. The doctor says she has 2-4 weeks.

So Sweetie's siblings are making arrangements to gather at his mother's empty home next door to us. His mother wants to die in her own home. Ms. Control Freak sister, who has power of attorney and who his mom lives with, says "no way." So tomorrow there will be a showdown.

Ah the wonder of family dynamics. Been through it with my own mother's illness and death. This time I'll try to be a bystander - until Ms. Control Freak says something to me - which lately she's had difficulty with. Then the gloves are off.

When his mother passes he and his siblings are supposed to split her money - and the proceeds from the sale of her home (when it sells) - four ways. But, Ms. Control Freak has spent most of the money and had her name added to the house deed behind her siblings' backs. So that ought to get interesting.

Maybe some day he'll come out of this with his inheritance. He plans to use it to help us purchase a place in the Upper Peninsula.

Then to get us more inspired and hopeful, we got word of an 11 acre place across the road from an inland lake with a small remodeled home about the size we're in and a 24x24 pole barn. With the inheritance we could pay cash for the place - even without selling this place.

At the end of the day I just told him, "Whatever will be, will be. The perfect place for us will come our way when the time is right."

In the meantime, I've been reading The Long Emergency by James Kunstler. If you haven't read it you're in the dark. I've learned more about oil, the Middle East, geopolitics, our complacency and various other topcs in the first two chapters to keep me awake at night contemplating Life After Oil.

I'm betting it will happen in my lifetime. If not, definitely in my children's' lifetimes.

Well, time for a little shut eye. Later, Treesong