Mary was a carpenter's wife.

I am depressed and frustrated today.  We have been trying to sell our house for well over a year.  A couple of times we "were getting an offer" but it never worked out.  About a month ago we sold our house and had an agreement on the BEST HOUSE!  But a couple weeks later our buyers backed out and then our sellers backed out and now we're back to square one. 

It's so hard to show this house.  It's hard to keep the house together for showings.  It's hard getting the kids out of the house.  It's hard.

We've put a lot of work into this house.  It's a great house.  I get a lot of compliments on how it's decorated, so I think I've done a good job with it.  I know that everyone has different style and tastes, but it's mostly neutral.  The best feedback I got from one realtor was "great use of the space"... THANK YOU!  I've been trying to have a place for everything and make the house as functional as possible for a long time.  It's a good house; it's just not a good house for me.  It's too far from my friends and family; my life of course is with my husband and my children, but everything I need to conduct life... is 25 minutes away.

It always amazed me how some people could move across country, or to another continent.  I know 25 minutes to some people is like rubbing elbows, but not for me.  It's hard.  What has me so frustrated is that time and time again I get feedback about the "work that needs to be done" or that "they're worried their furniture won't fit".  Today I got "the house needs some tender loving care."  Now you may or may not have gotten this: I am OCD.... you will not get more tender loving care than you will from someone with OCD.  And I have to wonder where these people will move?  I'd love to see the model home that they are buying in this area in this price range.  What is wrong with people!?!?!?!

The house we were going to move into needed work... every wall had to be ripped down, every pipe needed to be replaced.  There was no kitchen and no functional bathroom.  All the landscaping around the house had to be regraded to stop water from coming into the house.  The main joists of the house had to be replaced. There was NO AIR CONDITIONING.  So when people tell me that my house needs work I want to punch them in their faces. 

I'm trying to pray for "serenity to accept the things I cannot change..." but it's so incredibly difficult.  Because the problem to me is that no one wants to work anymore.  No one wants to earn anything, they just deserve anything they want.  I CAN NOT STAND THE AIRE OF ENTITLEMENT IN THIS GENERATION!!!! 

I come from a working class family.  When we move from one house to another we rip up carpets, knock down walls, refinish floors and replace toilets.  We build our homes.  There's pride to be had, people!  There is glory in work.  There is victory in sweat.  That's what creates character, both in your home and in your spirit.  You want a new construction home in your price range, you'll get a contractor's grade piece of shit that will fall apart sooner than later because the builder ran out of funds and short-changed all your finishes.  Good luck with that.  There is quality in hard work.  It's depressing that no one has any skills anymore.  It's depressing that a degree and a college education is robbing our children of SKILL!  We have been blessed with so many gifts, gifts that people are unaware they have because they don't want to work. 

I'm really fortunate that my husband has a great full-time "corporate" job working in construction management, but what I love most about him is that he works on the side as a carpenter.  I was at a baby shower for Dave's friend from work.  Dave had recently done work at her house and her mother's house.  When I came in, I was introduced as "the carpenter's wife".  I was so proud and I said "Mary was a carpenter's wife."  I had never though about it until the words were spilling out of my mouth, but no matter how people look at it: Mary was a carpenter's wife.  We all come from a family of carpenters... so reach into your soul and find your roots in work... you'll be amazed at what you can do.