HOME AT LAST

Well, the day finally came.  We are homeowners again!  After 391 days of being “homeless”, approximately 6,000 miles driven on the roads, over 100 engine hours on the water, traveling through 12 states, sleeping in 41 different beds, we are ready to settle down. 

We closed on our new home Thursday, October 6th at a title company in San Antonio.  It’s not everyone that goes to their closing “dirty”.  We woke up that morning to discover that we had no water at the casita we were renting.  It seems that the well had been struck by lightning a week or so before and we had been  using the water in the tank (or cistern).  It ran out, so we couldn’t shower.  Oh well, the closing went off without a hitch and we were excited. 

We didn’t spend the night here that night, as we had the carpets cleaned in the afternoon, but we did move in most of the items we had with us, plus lots of things we had already bought.  That afternoon they delivered a new washer, dryer and refrigerator.  On Friday they delivered a new beautiful bedroom set and memory foam mattress.  Saturday the new 60” TV arrived (do you want to come over and watch something?).  Since our stored items weren’t going to be delivered for a week or so, we bought a card table and 2 folding chairs.  Now, with these items, what more could you need?

We spent the next days organizing, cleaning (you know we are both compulsive about that), learning systems, reading manuals, getting cable, internet, phones and security systems installed, provisioning the house, sitting by the pool and meeting neighbors.  We were glad to have that time before the chaos of the moving van’s arrival. 

On October 18th, our “stuff” finally arrived from our storage unit on Hilton Head.  It arrived in relatively good shape -- a few broken items, but nothing drastic.  Being “mission oriented” people, we have already done an amazing job of unpacking.  We are probably 90% finished already.  It’s been fun so see our things that we haven’t seen for over a year.  Some items are great, others we look at and say “why did we move that”? 

We’ve met some really nice people who we hope will become good friends to add to those we have in other places we have lived.  We’re even invited to our first party -- Halloween -- do we have to wear costumes?

We saw a bumper sticker that said “Life’s too short not to live it as Texans” and decided that that should be our motto.  Our Texas family and friends will understand that.  Others of you may think we are crazy, but we aren’t. 



We still have lots to buy -- to replace all the furniture we sold or gave away.  We will NOT have to buy any more art work or knickknacks.  This is where we have noticed a difference in the size of the house, there aren't as many places to display items.  But on the whole, this downsizing idea was a good one. 

We probably won’t send many more blogs, as our lives will probably seem dull to you after what we have been doing, but we sure want to stay in touch.  We don’t want to put our new address and phone numbers on the blog.  We will send them in a separate email or letter. 

Thanks for reading these and commenting.  Your friendship and family love is very important to us. 

Love from the Texans, Judy and Matt Hartnett

Texas Hill Country - after rain

Judy drinking coffee awaiting movers

They arrived!

Matt putting desk together

60" TV

Where do we put all the knickknacks and art?

Isn't he supposed to be unpacking?

Beautiful backyard on a gorgeous day!

Local law firm -- note door opens from 2nd floor to nothing -- is this for non-paying clients?

THE HARTNETTS SET TO STIMULATE THE ECONOMY

Headline--Boerne, Texas:  Matt and Judy buy house.  Now they need new appliances, furniture, linens, towels, “stuff”, etc.  Texas likes having them move here because they are spending money!  Maybe the government could give them a stimulus for helping matters out. 

Seriously, yes we did buy a house and close on October 6th.  We are so excited to finally settle down after a year of traveling around in a boat and/or a Chevy Suburban.  We looked at this area when we were here back in May and really liked it, so have been checking houses on the internet ever since.  Two weeks ago we actually toured 9 houses in the neighborhood we wanted.  We fell in love with one so made an offer.  After some negotiating (remember I’m married to a “salesman”) we agreed on a mutually acceptable price. 

The house is 3,000 square feet with 3 bedrooms, 2-1/2 baths, a study, family room, breakfast room, wonderful kitchen and a 3 car garage, built in 2003.  It is on about 3/4 of an acre with a park-like backyard, a gorgeous pool and a cabana.  I think it must have been professionally decorated because it is “perfect.”  The only thing I want to do is change the master bathroom paint color.  We may add a jacuzzi to the pool and change the fence, but not immediately. 

We thought it was great to sell, give away or throw away many items such as a car, lots of furniture, clothes and kitchen items, but now thinking about how much we have to buy is daunting.  At least there is great shopping here and in San Antonio.  We love all the stores. 

We are very satisfied with our decision.  We feel so “at home” here.  We love the town of Boerne with all its old Texas charm.  In fact on Thursday we went in a local ice cream shop (we can do that because we go to the gym 6 days a week) which was in a building from the 1850’s that was originally a saloon.  There is an inn here from about the same era which is a wonderful place to visit and eat.   We keep discovering areas of interest.  On Tuesday mornings we take our walk in the town and look at all the buildings and businesses, then go to the local coffee shop for $1.00 coffees or lattes and sit out in front watching all the cars go by.  It really is a small town.  This is what Matt has always wanted. 

Our house is in an area called Fair Oaks Ranch.  It is like a subdivision (8 miles south of Boerne), but is an incorporated town unto itself.  Therefore, the taxes pay for all the upkeep such as roads, maintenance, landscaping, etc. instead of large homeowner’s association dues.  There are about 2,200 homes there.  It was originally a private 5,000 acre ranch which was subdivided about 25 years ago into homesites -- small garden lots up to 10 acre ranch parcels. 

There is a club there which is owned by Club Corp of America.  It has 2 golf courses, 14 tennis courts, 3 swimming pools and a newly opened fitness center.  Our Realtor is paying 1/2 of the membership fee (which was dirt cheap anyway) and the dues are so reasonable.  Also, the special if you sign up now, is 1/2 price on all meals for the foreseeable future.  They have a relatively new chef and the food is fabulous.  The clubhouse is in the original 14,000 square foot ranch house with the different rooms set up as dining rooms.  A few years ago they added another 10,000 square feet.  Matt is ready to take on their tennis players and I can’t wait to start swimming.  They also have several bridge clubs, which I am anxious to "try out."   

We are still enjoying the YMCA -- Matt because of all the young, blonde, Texas housewives and me because of all the young, male bodybuilders.  Seriously, we like exercising, but that makes it easy on the eyes.

Now all we need is rain . . . very dry with a record drought going on.  Also some record heat this summer.  It is starting to cool off a little in the mornings and evenings and hopefully we will begin the fall weather.
 
Matt is set to go to Hilton Head to get our belongings out of storage.  The moving van comes on October 3rd.  I’ll stay here and make sure everything goes properly (and do some shopping). 

That's about it for now.  We are staying busy with all the house stuff.  We hope everyone survived whatever kind of summer they had -- wet, dry, hot, normal, Irene, etc.  Fall is a beautiful time all around the country, so enjoy it.  We plan to.  We hope to hear from you and we'll keep you up-to-date on our activities. 

Matt hasn't bought his new cowboy boots yet -- he did try some on, but they didn't have his size.  Can you believe that boots are some of the things we gave away in Hilton Head?  We both had them, so guess we'll just have to buy  more.  

To give you an idea how hot it has been, check out the local bulldog
 

Front of new home

Family room

Study

Kitchen

Pool and Cabana

Park-like backyard

The Latest Texas Report from Matt

Well, we have been in our rental "casita" for a few weeks here in Boerne, Texas, and we are enjoying this delightful little town just north of San Antonio.  We have scouted lots of areas north, east and west of Boerne and still like this great town the best.  It is taking us a while to get used to the parched countryside, due to a severe drought the past year or so.  Also, if we do settle here, you want to be "out of here" in July and August, not much different than Hilton Head and most of the USA.  Three figure temperatures are not fun, but the relatively low humidity helps.  We like to walk early, when it is in the 70's, but it is getting pretty warm by about 7:30.  We spent a few days in San Antonio, doing the tourist things like the Alamo, etc.  Great city that I lived in for about half of 1971.  This was the town I came to after the Bronx and I discovered Mexican food!  Put on 15 pounds in 3 months!  The Mexican food is still great and we love the barbecue.  We do the gym 6 days a week!  I guess we have been away from really nice stores for about many years and just love strolling through Neiman Marcus and all the upscale stores in San Antonio.  We don't buy anything that won't fit in our Chevy Suburban, but it is great to look.  We discovered a huge Bass Pro Shop that has everything a real man could want.  I roamed from the fishing section to the hunting section, gun shop, hiking stuff, etc.  Attached to the shop is one of the best seafood restaurants we have every eaten in, including the wonderful ones we found in Florida.  After our second meal there, including a stroll through the store, I told Judy "we have gotta move here!"

We have been venturing out from the Casita to look at homes this past week and it is amazing what you can get for your money out here.  I think we are all trained to think east & west coast prices are the "norm."  We have been impressed so far and we just may buy something out here in the future.  A friend, who lives in Boise, told us not long ago, that we will know in our hearts when we find our next home and so far we have felt very comfortable in Texas.  Very friendly real downhome people, prosperous economy and low taxes.  What more could you want?

I have included some photos with this entry, but the blogspot people put the pictures in the darnest places, so the order may not make sense.

We are enjoying life, we are healthy and excited about Texas.  Just need the Fall to arrive, cool down a bit and please God, SEND RAIN!!

Hope you are all well and email or call us sometime, y'all.

What more could you need?

The ranch casita with a disappearing lawn.  Can't water with the drought.

Evening at the Ranch

The "Casita"

The "Casita"

Matt's home away from home

Great seafood at the Bass Pro Shop

Matt checking out a deer feeder

Matt at the Alamo

Outhouse at the Bandara Gun Club.  Door on the left is for "Pointers", the other for "Setters"

The Girls looking for their morning water

FROM ONE HOT PLACE TO ANOTHER

Lots has happened to the wandering Hartnetts since our last blog.  We stayed at the rental house in Sedona until July 31st.  During the last few weeks we did a lot of sightseeing -- including Bearizona (a drive-through wildlife park in Williams AZ), Montezuma’s Castle (cliff dwellings from the 1400s), and other ancient Indian settlements, such as Montezuma Well and Tuzigoot.  There is much to see there, but not a lot to do in the town.  We now know why they call Sedona “Slowdona."  Being there that long gave us a good taste of the area and we made the decision that we don’t want to live in Sedona.  It is certainly beautiful, but not for us. 

We decided that we wanted to go back to Texas (the Boerne area) to see if it might be the place for us to settle down.  We had good memories of it from when we were there in May.  We left early on Sunday (we got in the habit of getting up very early because it started to get light about 4:30 a.m.) for the long drive.  We spent the first night in  Roswell, NM then drove into Boerne Monday afternoon.

So far, so good.  We are really enjoying it.  The people we have met are just great and the food, just what we like.  We have had 3 meals here -- Mexican, barbecue and hamburgers.  We think we died and went to heaven.   Our eating habits are why we must always be close to a gym.  

The best news is we found a house to rent.  It is called a “casita” which sits on 10.5 acres in the hills, about 6 miles north of town.  It is adorable and has great air conditioning.  The woman that owns it lives up the road about a mile and is so friendly and helpful.  She recommended that we join the YMCA in town -- I told you we need to exercise.   It is a very nice, fully equipped facility with friendly people running it.  We also “joined” the brand new Public Library.  It has only been open two months and is light, airy and full of books.  We are starting to feel at home already. 

Well, we must get down to what you are all thinking about -- the heat.  Yes, it is hot.  Yes, it is summertime and it seems to be hot almost everywhere.  Sedona was surprisingly hot.  The people down here think it is humid, but after Hilton Head, we don’t feel it at all.  In fact, I think is it 103 right now and we just sat outside at a diner for our hamburgers at 2:00 p.m.  They had fans on and it didn’t seem that bad.  Of course, we would like it to be a little cooler.  Everyone says that it is an exceptionally hot summer.  Also, they are in the most severe drought they have experienced since the 1950’s.  We think that if we like it now, we will love it when it cools down and they finally get rain. 

We are very optimistic, but have not made any decisions.  We will get settled in and then maybe start looking at some houses.  The  cost of living is very low here.  Also, the 100 year old town (a “real” town with old buildings fully occupied, not abandoned, like some places we have been in the last year) is actually growing and prosperous.

America White Bison - Bearizona

Adult Black Bear - Bearizona

Baby Wolf - Bearizona

Black Bear Cub - Bearizona

Matt on hike

Even Judy went for a hike

Montezuma Well

Judy at Montezuma Well

Some of the reasons we didn't like Sedona

More reasons

Cute carton -- is that about the Hartnetts?

Longhorn seen from our hotel room in Boerne

A DAY IN THE LIFE . . .

Chapel Built in Red Rocks

Matt likes to hike on Bell Rock

One of Matt's hiking trails

Lynx just walking around in yard

Matt in RV7

Matt and Judy not far from "our house"

Judy at Grand Canyon

Grand Canyon

Grand Canyon

We don’t have a lot to report, but you might find it interesting what we do to wile away our time. 

We joined a fantastic gym (part of a Hilton Hotel spa) and have been using it almost daily.  Part of the membership was an hour with a personal trainer.  We both used that time to learn more about the strength training machines.  Two days a week we do those machines, along with either an elliptical machine or an exercise bike and floor exercises.  I have really gotten back into swimming.  I swim 60 laps (in a 75 foot pool) three days a week.  The days I swim Matt goes hiking in the red rocks.  He enjoys it for the exercise and the beauty of it.  There are endless trails here in Sedona and it is a very popular activity.  We both take walks periodically.  I think we are finally getting used to the altitude.  The first few days we were out of breath with the least amount of exertion. 

At least one day a week we try to go somewhere or do something fun.  One day last week we drove up to the Grand Canyon.  Imagine being able to be there in less than two hours.  As you all probably know, it is a spectacular place.  One day we drove to Prescott where Matt went to a shooting range and I went shopping.  One day we went to a chapel built in the red rocks then down to two wineries and had tastings at both.  Tomorrow we are going to the old mining town of Jerome. 

Every Sunday we go to the Sedona United Methodist Church.  Next to our wonderful church on Hilton Head, this is the friendliest we have found.  We stay after the service each week for a “coffee” hour and have met some very nice people.  It is fun to talk with them to see why they like living here.  On July 3rd, we went to a function at the church.  It was a fried chicken dinner then a play about the origin of "Old Glory".  Afterward we all sang patriotic songs. 

One day two of Matt's  friends flew into the Sedona airport from Tucson and took him for a ride.  They both have home built aircraft, one has an RV6 and the other an RV7.  They are built from kits purchased from Van’s Aircraft in Oregon.  They have been in business for about 25 years and there are over 1500 aircraft flying.  Our good friend in Aiken, Dick Healey, is building an RV12 right now and hopes to have it flying before the end of the year.  Matt is interested in buying one when we finally settle down.  He won’t build it himself, but may buy one from his friend who has built four RV7s and has one for sale now.  He said it would be hard to buy a plane now, when you don’t live anywhere.  Need to settle someplace with a neat airport and hangars.

I have started playing bridge on Fridays -- a hard habit to break.  I go to the local Elks Club where the Sedona Bridge Club meets.  It is “duplicate” which is not my favorite, but at least I can play some.  It will never take the place of my great bridge groups on Hilton Head. 

We are enjoying all the wildlife here.  A lynx walked through our backyard and I saw it again the next day on my walk.  Matt saw a coyote on his hike yesterday.  We see many Quail families, consisting of the two parents and about a dozen babies.  They prefer to walk than fly.  You can see a parent in the front, then the babies, then another parent.  If they are in the middle of the street, you’d better stop because they won’t fly away.  Lots of rabbits on the golf course, which may explain the coyote and the lynx.

I have now dragged Matt down to my level.  Those of you that know me well, know that I love to watch trials especially on CourtTV.  Well, I’ve been watching the Casey Anthony murder trial.  Matt has really gotten into it also.  We sat around a lot of last weekend watching the closing arguments and discussed it thoroughly.  We were disappointed with the verdict.  What a shame that beautiful little baby didn’t get “justice.”  If Casey didn’t kill her, who did? 

A few comments on Sedona -- it’s hotter than we thought it would be.  We are anxiously awaiting the monsoons that everyone keeps talking about.  There are lots of people here with long, gray ponytails driving a Subaru.  There are many places to buy beads, have “readings”, study UFO’s, etc.  The California crowd is very much in evidence.  It is a place with lots of tourists and part time residents.  Also, we think that most people here are not of our political leaning -- not that there’s anything wrong with that. 

Many of you have been asking if we have smoke from any of the wildfires.  Thankfully, the answer is no.  But, today we have dust as a result of a dust storm yesterday in Phoenix that made all the national news.  

No decisions have been made so far, but we’re enjoying life. 

Maybe some day I'll figure out this blog site -- the pictures are at the beginning, not the end.  This has happened before, but not all the times -- how come?  Anyway, enjoy them. 

Till next time. 

ARIZONA

We found the most beautiful place in the world with the most perfect weather.  Now we will see if we can live here. 

I digress, when last we spoke we were in Lubbock, Texas, getting ready to go to Arizona.  Well, we did.  We spent two days driving to Tucson (we did see some smoke from the wildfires in the distance) where we spent a week at a beautiful Embassy Suites.  The first night we were there we went to our friends from Canadair days, Frank and Diane Barker’s beautiful home in the Catalina Foothills for a glass of wine.  They then took us to their clubhouse for a dinner out on the veranda with fantastic city views.  We really enjoyed having a meal outside with a cool evening and not a single bug to interrupt our dinner!  It was a great introduction to Tucson. 

The next day we drove up to a development introduced to us by our friend Walt Fraser, called Saddlebrooke.  It is about 25 miles Northwest of Tucson.  We spent at least half of the day looking at model homes, lots to build on, and talking with the salesperson.  No, we aren’t going to build, but this is a good way to learn about the area and the houses.  This salesperson is one of many we are dragging into our “process.”  Saddlebrooke is huge -- over 5,000 homes.  In our opinion, the best part of the development is their clubhouses.  They have fantastic fitness centers, pools, tennis courts, restaurants, etc.  We fell in love with the one at The Preserve. 

Sunday, after going to a local church, we met with another realtor and looked at several houses in Oro Valley.  The rest of the week we just rode around and looked at areas.  We decided that Tucson wasn’t for  us.  We have three sets of friends there and really wanted it to work, but we don’t think it will. 

One day Matt met his friend, Warren Gretz, that we knew in Denver (haven’t seen him since the 80’s, but last year they started communicating by email -- I call them “pen pals”).  They went flying in Warren’s RV6 experimental airplane, which he built.  It is similar to the one Dick Healey is building in Aiken. 

We then drove to Prescott, AZ (pronounced “preskit”).  We were on our way to Sedona, but couldn’t get a room until Sunday, so thought we would just stop in Prescott to bide our time.  Well, we were favorably impressed with the town.  It has a great old historic downtown with lots of stores, restaurants and a beautiful courthouse square.  We even had a beer in a bar, The Palace on Whiskey Row, where Wyatt Earp and Doc Holiday used to sip a cool one in between gunfights.  One evening we went to a concert on the square where people bring their chairs and the whole family listens to music.  Great fun.  We drove around looking at areas and fitness facilities, then met with a realtor.  We like the town, but didn’t really pick out a place we would be interested in living yet.  The weather was wonderful -- dry, and cool in the morning and evenings. 

Sunday, after visiting a church in Prescott, we took the scenic drive to Sedona over some mountain passes and through the historic copper mining town of Jerome.  The views and vistas were fantastic.  We got up to 7680 feet.  We came down into the Sedona valley and couldn’t believe what we saw.  The red rocks are everywhere and colors that are hard to describe (and don’t come out that well in pictures).  We just love it. 

Monday we met with a realtor recommended by Walt Fraser.  He is supposed to be the best in town.  After a long discussion on why we should buy and live in Sedona, he showed us 5 homes.  He knew we aren’t buying immediately, but wanted us to see what you got for your money here.  Some were more interesting than others.  It is easy to get a good view as the town is surrounded by mountains and it is almost all National Park land.  The town is fairly small with lots of tourists, but there are some surrounding towns, such as Oak Creek and Cottonwood, that are not as busy and have fabulous views.  At the realtor’s suggestion, we went up one of the mountains to the Enchantment Resort for a sunset drink.  Unbelievable views of the red rocks and valleys with the shadows ascending the rock cliffs as the sun goes down.  We recommend this place for our big buck friends, as it is very pricey.  You won’t catch us staying there, but it is amazing and you don’t even have to fly to France to see it.

Today we looked at some homes to rent.  We decided the best way to judge an area is to live in it for a few months.  We found a great house with wonderful views, so we took it from June 13 to July 31.  The house is located in the Sedona Golf Resort and there is a large Hilton complex there.  The advantage of the Hilton is they have a spectacular spa with lap pool, tennis courts and fitness center that is very reasonable to join on a monthly basis.  It will be good to stop staying in hotels and eating every meal out at restaurants.   We will take this time to learn the area and see if this is a place we could live in.

We are going back to Prescott tomorrow for a few days to check out some things, then will come back here Monday to move into our temporary digs. 

An interesting fact -- Arizona does not go on Daylight Savings Time -- so it is always Mountain Standard Time.   Right now, it is the same as Pacific Time.  Sunrise here is around 5:00 a.m.  We get up so early that we can’t stay awake at night.  We have been sleeping so well -- is it the fresh air or the lack of stress from owning a boat?

Stay turned to the next blog to see how we like beautiful Sedona.

We love hearing from all of you and hope you either stay dry, cool, warm or whatever, depending on what part of the country you are in. 

Sedona, Arizona

Judy and Matt at Enchantment Resort

Matt at Rental House

View from Master Bedroom at Rental House

View from area of Rental House