Crossing the Rubicon

Santina and I have been up to our armpits in this river crossing, but we've finally reached shallow water and we're rejoicing; appreciating the sunlight, the regular appearance of deer, sweet relationships with new neighbors and friends, and the occasional 12 hour visit from Sophia.

During the past few days we have finally closed on our construction loan (not without last minute defensive maneuvering from our frigging contractor), and we have overcome a seemingly insurmountable bureaucratic obstacle in order to clear the way to refinance with the local TD Bank. Everything is falling into place, and short of the possible initiation of litigation by a subcontractor who placed a lien on the house for work never paid for by the contractor, a river of ugliness is finally behind us. We rejoice, but briefly.

On Sunday I head for Vero Beach for a 4 day training period with Senior Life Services. Only 30% of the trainees survive Year 1 but for some reason I expect to be among them. Perhaps because the people SLS works with are my people. For those who remember stories of the Ellis Hotel -- it's these people. For those who remember my oral history work from the early 90's -- there were plenty of these folks in that group. And the process is similar, sitting down and talking to people in their living rooms. So we'll see.

As of this afternoon our Matrix has NC plates. My cell phone number has been changed (to 828 200-5089) to facilitate work. And Santina has found the hair dresser she's always been locking for. We're here for a bit.