All Is Not Lost

After our first buyer walked away on day nine of the 10-day contingency period, we worried that another buyer would not come along and that we would be stuck in Florida where C. cannot practice law without taking the Bar Exam.  Florida is one of only a handful of states that does does not allow a lawyer in good standing with his or her home Bar Association, to apply for Bar membership without the exam.  What this means for us is moving out of state so that C. can practice law without risking disbarment. 

Fortunately, another buyer came along who seems serious about completing the purchase transaction.  We are guardedly optimistic and knocking on every wood surface we encounter.  Assuming all goes according to plan (touche bois) we will be homeless for a time, figuratively speaking.  Sadly this means that our children will not have a home to return to this summer:  one will remain in her current apartment and the other will in all likelihood move to LA.

So now the fun part begins:  looking for a house in another state.  Georgia is a logical choice for us because we both have family in Atlanta as well as numerous friends, and the Georgia Bar welcomes lawyers from other Bar Associations (assuming no felonies or other serious problems).  Based on a meeting with our financial adviser yesterday, we should not buy anything over $100K if we want to continue to live comfortably.  This assumes we never earn another nickel, which is not likely to happen, but you never know.  I'm trying to launch a writing career and like aspiring writers everywhere am not finding much in the way of paid work.  Unfortunately, every house we like in Atlanta is well over $600K and already under contract, so we're not sure we can afford much more than a mobile home.  Recession's over, I guess.

Meanwhile, my poor husband is doing battle with the vile HR Monster which prefers its victims to be younger and less qualified (cheaper) than he is.  C. spends countless hours filling out online applications and sending résumés to computers which don't give a damn about anything other than his age and years of experience.  A man of C.'s intelligence, creativity, and experience needs to work and if the HR Monster would get out of the way, there are many jobs he could do happily and easily.  But that is the problem:  in a world ruled by HR Monsters, no one is supposed to be happy and no one's job is supposed to be easy.

The good news is that we are having a lot of fun sharing the office and hanging out together.  The dogs are happier, too.  If we can find a house that we like in a location that works for us and that allows us to work, we might just stay afloat for a few more decades.  Otherwise, we plan to go out in style and with our boots on!