From My Window: Watching the Spring Come In.

 We have been watching spring and the trees coming in through our window.

 In the middle of all this bursting and blooming, we had a tremendous rainbow,  It arched over the building and was at one point almost a double.  So hard to take its picture.

Then a few weeks later we were treated to another explosion of color.  Every year, two weeks before the Kentucky Derby, Louisville puts on a big fireworks show called Thunder Over Louisville.  We were completely surprised to discover we could see it from our very own window. (Again, very hard to take its picture, but it was definitely another spectacle.)

Now we are pretty much in full green mode.

But next week we plan to leave for Michigan, where spring has barely begun.  Get to see the leaves come in all over again!

(Picture courtesty of the wonderful Jill Burkland, who has a cottage just across the lake.)

#1400Willow
#FromMyWindow

Chairs

Getting away from unpleasant topics outside and moving closer to home, this post is dedicated to Charlie Sweitzer who made these beautiful Shaker rockers for us.

Charlie is an artist who makes extraordinary Shaker chairs,and stools.  We have several at the lake.  When we moved to our new condominium, we wanted somewhere to sit and take in the view, so we commissioned these rocking chairs from Charlie.  They are cherry frame with birds eye maple slats.

In the South, where I grew up, people sit in rocking chairs on the porch and admire the view.  We don't have a porch, but we definitely have a view.

#CharlieSweitzer
#RockingChairs
#1400

We Have Moved!

Last post in the on-going saga of Debra and Tony and their search for somewhere for them and their books to settle in.  Last Thursday we closed on the house and moved our furniture to 1400 Willow.  Our email addresses and cell phone numbers are the same, but the 456-1865 number is defunct.  (if you need new phone numbers, send me an email.) One of the happy consequences of this move is that we have severed our connections with Time Warner!

We are almost (superficially) settled in and will leave for the Lake next Tuesday, arriving Thursday June 2, at which point I hope to resume my regular blogging life!

We are happy to be where we are and where we will be, but we are EXHAUSTED.  Moving is not for the old or weak!

Celebratory champagne and caviar at our new home!

#1400Willow
#Moving

More Condo

We went back to the condo today to watch while it was inspected.  Here are some pictures I took.  The unit itself is in the process of being packed up, so things are a little askew.  But you can get a sense of things.

The best part is the view.  And you have to imagine it when the trees get their leaves back!

The living room fireplace and bookcases.

The molding and door features.

Into the Dining Room.

Me excited!

Would that our house was so ready to sell!


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#BuyingaCondo

We Are Buying a Condo!

We have a contract on a condo!  Those of you who live in Louisville will recognize it as 1400 Willow.  And while it looks like a high-rise apartment building anywhere, it's actually located just across from Cherokee Park.  (Cherokee Park is in the Highlands, where we live, and is a Fredrick Law Olmstead Park, which is one of the reasons we so much wanted to stay in this area.)   We are on the eighth floor in the front, overlooking Cherokee Triangle and the Park itself.  It has several things we most wanted:  it's in a secure building (so we can just walk away when we go to Michigan in the summer or on other trips); it has an elevator (so we can live here even if our legs eventually give out); it's in the Highlands.

There are very few buildings that fulfill all these criteria, and we have been hoping since last May.  This is the first and only unit we've seen that checks all our boxes.  So we jumped on it.  We saw it on Monday evening the first day it came on the market, and by Tuesday afternoon, we had an accepted contract.  We still need to go through all the preliminaries (inspection, appraisal, etc.) but we foresee no difficulties.  Here are pictures from the listing service; remember this is not our furniture or style.

Entry Hall

Living Room. The back wall is all windows overlooking the park.

Dining Room.  

Bedroom

Kitchen

Breakfast Nook

Second Bedroom/Den

Eventually we plan to redocorate, but that's a bit down the road,until we have settled in (and our finances have some breathing room.)  We are up to our ears right now, renovating our house so we can sell it.  So we are going to wait til we've lived in it a bit.

I have never made such an important decision so quickly.  Tony and I usually belong to the Undeciders, senior level.  But given the absolute lack of anything else (and how much we really like this building), we uncharacteristically jumped right in.

#1400 Willow

#BuyingaCondo