Monday, May 24, 2010

Still crossed and getting crosser

It's been a long few days here in Idiot Wants to Buy a House for Far Less Than Owner Is Willing to Take land.

The guy has to be out of his house by June 14, so he wants to start moving things into our house. By the 12th. Without even signing a contract or closing or anything.

Every time that Tom talks to him, he changes the price he's willing to pay. Up, down, up down updown. He knows what we'll take. Tom is tired of dealing with him, so it's back to the real estate agent who doesn't know what she's doing. He's complained to her boss; we'll see how that plays out. That woman does not deserve $50 for selling that house.

We figure that it costs about $14,000 a year to just let the house sit: mortgage, insurance, taxes, electricity, gas for heating. We're willing to take much less than we originally priced the house 9 months ago, but we're not willing to lose money on the deal.

That's where that stands.



In other news, I finished my Petrie on Saturday. No photos yet; the creeping crud I caught a week ago has turned into bronchitis and I wasn't exactly a ball of fire this weekend. Petrie ended up being a little snug, which I kind of expected, because I wasn't sure how the measurements worked; measured under the bust or over? That makes a big difference. I went with under, didn't work. IF I lose those 25 pounds, it might work out. Anyway, the yarn knit up wonky again, it twists the entire thing at an angle, even before it was sewn together. I had that problem when I used the yarn for the Tropical Tee. Blocking doesn't help.

So I started another one, this time using Feza Cayenne, I think. I bought 19 balls in assorted colors back in the winter at $1 a ball, and it should take about 4.5 balls.

I love the way Petrie knit up. It's easy and quick in spite of having to sew the side seams. The first one is a little too big in the armholes, so I'm taking them down an inch. I'd added 1" to the length, so now I'll add 2" to make up for that loss in the arms. This yarn is worsted weight instead of DK, so I'm using a slightly larger needle but knitting the same size as before, hoping it'll end up a little bigger. We'll see.

Nothing going on in the job-hunt front. If the house sells it won't be quite as crucial to have a job waiting for me, but I'll still need one.

It's wait and see, all around.



*UPDATE* The Idiot called twice this morning, first to make an offer of the amount we'll actually take, then almost immediately after to retract that offer. Huh.

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