A Quick Trip To The Future

Amazingly enough, changing your whole life can be pretty easy on paper.

My realtor pitched my proposal to the seller's agent, the necessary back and forth calls were made, a few faxes and the deal was sealed. Drop a check in the mail, pick a closing date, good to go. Simple as that. Really.

Everything was a blur- I had bought a farm. Sight unseen, a 100+ year old house. On a strangers recommendation. It only made sense that maybe I should take a trip up to see just what I had gotten into.

Two weeks later, a friend and I flew up to Charlotte, rented a car and off we went on my great adventure. Other than the realtor in NC, only two friends and my daughter knew what I had done so it was a super secret mission.

January in NC can be just awful. The day before we arrived, a huge storm had come thru the area leaving tree limbs down, grey windy skys and everything was cold and wet. I worried that this was an omen.

We found our way to a neighboring town, met with the realtor and hit the road to go visit my new home.

Traveling up a steep, winding road, there at the top of the hill sat and old, dull white house. The back screen door was falling off, the fields were waist high in weeds, a huge barn was falling in. The wind was blowing the tin on the roof of the barn making incredible sounds like a dinosaur eating the scaffolding off the Empire State building.

But incredibly, inside, although filthy and neglected, the house was sound. It was quiet and dry. Huge high ceilings, hardwood floors, lots of windows and doors, porches, fireplaces, large rooms. All original hardware on the doors. New bathroom, new hot water heater, new A/C unit, new electrical wiring, good roof. It could be so much worse.

It had my favorite feeling- Potential.