Philly Back In the Day
Elisabeth and I took a trip up to a small community about an hour north of our home. Liz had a line on a little house up there that would be up for sale soon and we had a chance to see it before it got advertised. The woman selling it is the friend of a friend. She was kind and showed us around the house-not much more than an old bungalow actually, and then she took us for a walk to the nearby lake. My friend Ralph and I had fished on that lake a number of times so I already knew it well. I never caught anything on it, fact is I never even baited my hook. I just enjoyed putting around on the calm cool lake with Ralphie. We’d have lunch afterwards and maybe a beer. Going up to see the house seemed like a good idea when Liz suggested it. It was a disappointment. It was sad. Dilapidated, moldy smelling, and poorly built. I couldn't help but compare it to my own home as I walked through the tiny, low-ceiling'd rooms. I wouldn't have wanted it at half the price. In my eyes it was a "tear down", and I have no desire to create anymore masterpieces to live in. Done it twice. Enough. As it stands I'll keep my eyes open for an opportunity but keep my expectations tamped down. I had sworn myself to forget real estate and focus on relaxing and staying healthy. Still that doesn't mean I won't have to keep the maintenance up on my houses. That's a pretty hefty job all by itself.
But then I got to wondering if it might be nice to take a complete detour in lifestyle? New York City. Or Philly again? No more lawn or trees to trim, but no more garden either. No more car. No more walks in the woods but there would be walks in the city streets and the laughter coming out of the open windows and bar room doors. I wonder. I’d love to ‘swap’ my perfect little home in the burbs/woods for a little apartment for a while to see what it would be like to go back to urban life three score and thirteen. I wonder.
