New Roof

Living in your own house is a comedy of errors and sometimes they're costly errors. Two years ago the basement suffered some flood damage and I had to pay big bucks to have it waterproofed and the damaged floor repaired. Last summer I lived through the nightmare of having squirrels squatting in the attic and it took almost 2 months to completely eradicate them. I also had to replace the furnace (big bucks). This year the roof shingles are deteriorating so I'm having them and the eavestrough replaced. Big bucks again. I wonder what surprise expenditure is in store for the summer of 2010?

I don't remember a time in my life when I didn't crave owning my own house. My childhood was spent living in tiny cramped rooms (not even apartments) so it's understandable that home ownership would attract me. Houses looked rock solid and as though they'd stand strong forever. I had no idea they required constant maintenance to stay that way.

Dennis had always lived in his own house and he was never thrilled with the idea of home ownership like I was so maybe he realized that, by buying your own home, you were making a lifelong commitment of constant repairs. I was so ecstatic with owning this house back in 1968 that I only barely noticed that Dennis was always doing the repairs needed to keep it from falling apart.

He scraped scabby paint on the foundation and front steps every few years (it needs doing now, by the way), he replaced roof shingles twice (big bucks to pay someone else to do it this year), cleaned the eavestroughs regularly (small bucks to pay someone else to do it once a year), he replaced the kitchen and bathroom himself, he fixed leaky taps, he built the basement rec room, he repainted the whole inside of the house every 5 years (my choice). I did help him a bit but he was the one in charge and the one who did the bulk of the labor.

Dennis passed away 4 years ago and now it's me who has to tend to these repairs and I can tell you I'd rather not. Home ownership is losing it's sparkle for me and I now dream of the day when I have my own little apartment and can just call a superintendant to come fix the leaky tap or paint the place. I'm very aware it won't always be as easy as that but at least I won't have to be responsible for flooded basements or roof shingles anymore.

My neighbor, Lisa, threatens to move, too, if I sell my house but we both know the time is coming. I've spent 41 years here and, with luck, will be here a few more but the darned place has to give me a break now and then. Like maybe a year or two with no repairs!