Doors + Paint = Busy Weekend.

Usually the weekends fly by, but this weekend has felt a week long. Perhaps because we crammed so much house-related work into such a short span of time ...

Friday night, I met Josh up at the house, and we tore out all the old interior doors, door jams, and framing. They were so disgusting. Most of the doors had holes kicked in them and were filthy. The jams were worn down and barely functioning. Jackie and PJ met us up at the house in the evening, and we managed to hang two of the four doors. We decided to call it quits about 2am.

Saturday morning, I judged a moot court competition and then met Josh and co. up at the house. The paint crew started, and by the time I got there around noon, they had stripped out all the popcorn ceilings and repaired some of the holes in the walls! With the help of Frank, our new friend and handyman, we finished with the rest of the doors. Jackie, PJ, Josh, and I grabbed a bite to eat at Josh's favorite chain restaurant close-by and then headed back to our apartment. I was so exhausted last night, I crashed at 10pm!

I had planned on working this morning, but I seem to have caught whatever ugly bug is floating around. So, I ended up sleeping in, hoping I can shake it before the week starts. My dad very graciously offered to buy us some appliances for the new pad, so we quickly met up with him to pick out what we liked and then grabbed some dinner.

Jackie was smart and brought her camera along this weekend, and I will post pics of the house progress as soon as she emails them to me. For now, I think I am going to hit the sack and try and shake this bug before the week starts!

It's official.

Our escrow closed today ...

We are homeowners!!!!!!!!!!

Aaaahhh! I am so excited! We pick up our keys tonight! We won't move in for another couple weeks so we can paint and put in new flooring. I will post some before and after shots. ;)

Meh.

So, it's been awhile, no? Hmm. Well, there hasn't been much to report. And, frankly, life has been pretty stressful.

The house thing is still plugging along, but financing has been stressful. The rates are changing daily, so it's kind of a roller coaster. We have a loan, but I had hoped for a lower rate. There's still time to back out, but I think we'll probably keep moving forward.

Work ... is, well, work. Monday started with the mediation of the case-I-hate-most. It was supposed to settle. Yes, I said "supposed to." No luck. Boo. Plus, all week, I kept feeling like I was screwing up everything I touched. Not a good feeling at all. Ah well, at least the week is over.

Tomorrow my cousin, Marco, arrives from Italy to stay with us for a week! I can't wait to see him and show him around town. He is always so hospitable every time I stay with him in Italy, so I'm looking forward to attempting to return the favor.

For now, I am off to watch "I Heart Huckabees" with Bug, Ajax, and Josh. Hopefully, there will be some fun to report on after the weekend.

Inspection.

What a crazy week. I have been in a house whirlwind. It's hard to work on or think about anything else.

Yesterday, we had an inspection on the house. Bug, Anthony, Jackie, and my grandparents came by before to check the place out. There were lots of enthusiastic comments about the backyard. Bug, Anthony, and Jackie thought the interior had potential, but I think my grandparents were a little scared. I think they'll feel better after paint and new carpet.

Given that the place is a fixer, I was a little nervous about what the inspector might say. Although there are a few things that need to be fixed, most are relatively minor. The roof, plumbing, foundation, and all other major systems of the home are functioning well, so that's good news. The inspector said it was a "cosmetic fixer." Yeah, we knew that much, at least. :)

So, now we wait for an appraisal and final loan approval. We should close mid-October. I go through phases of being really excited to getting really rattled and nervous. I hope all that is normal. Ahhhhhh.

Other than that, the weekend has been pretty low-key. Friday night, Josh and I went window-shopping at Home Depot. I have to work today, but hopefully I will have some time this evening to play...

Big day.

So, I made it back from Colorado Saturday night. I was so tired, I crashed as soon as I hit my pillow.

Today, Josh and I got up way too early and dropped off signed papers to the selling agent of the property we had made an offer on. We walked through the house again, and although there is a lot of work to be done (it's sort of a "fixer"), I still really loved the place and saw quite a bit of potential. After walking through the house, we ran some errands and grabbed lunch.

I headed off to Wan's baby shower at the Altadena Country Club. The shower was beautiful, the hostess very gracious, the food delicious, the paper products splendid, and the honored guest glowing! Sadly, I have no pictures, but I have a sneaking suspicion some will be posted on a few other blogs, soon.

At the shower, I got a call that ... the sellers accepted our offer!!!

Josh and I are so excited. I have to admit, I did get pretty nervous, though, after we got the news! Aaahhhh! Okay, I am mostly excited. :)

A little about the house: It is 4 bedroom/2 bath with a formal living and dining room and a family room. It's a cosmetic fixer and needs some paint and cleaning. Also, the kitchen and bathrooms could use upgrading. Buuut...it's located on an incredible almost half-acre lot with hill views in a great town with a great school district! It's kind of a commute for me, but it will be worth it.

Here's a pic of the backyard:



Anyway, that's the scoop! Now we have to wait a month or so, and if all goes well, we may have a house soon!

Oops.

So, I get up early this morning to prepare for today's session, and as I am getting ready, I realize I forgot my entire make-up bag in L.A. Of course I did. I mean, what better time to let the world see my scary, bare face than when I have to go before a group and talk? Yeah, classic move.

After some digging, I found a black eyeliner and some lip gloss at the bottom of my bag. Off to hijack some mascara. This is going to be a good day, I can already tell...

What happens in Nita City stays in Nita City...

I am in Colorado until Saturday evening for a Deposition Skills workshop sponsored by the firm and the National Institute for Trial Advocacy ("NITA"). For those of you lucky souls who are not lawyers, NITA is an organization that creates fake case materials and then law schools and other training programs use them. For example, most law school's use NITA materials for their Trial Advocacy programs. All facts occur in Nita City, in the State of Nita. All fake characters graduated from Nita Central High and went to school at Nita State University. You get the point. :)

So, I arrived this morning, checked into my hotel, and then headed out to NITA headquarters. (I guess I can now say I have "been to NITA.") We had a few presentations and a "case brainstorming" session today before we begin "taking depositions" tomorrow. Okay, I know this is really nerdy, but I was actually really having fun. I really like litigation and litigation strategy. Even if the case isn't real, I'll take what I can get.

After our sessions, we all went out to dinner and ordered way too much wine and sangria (which prompted someone to exclaim the phrase that became the title of this blog -- nerdy, I know). My face hurts from laughing so much. As demanding as my job can be, I really love the other associates I work with. I guess I really lucked out.

Off to bed for now. Am contemplating telling our "judge" that our fake case settled last night, so I don't have to get up and prep. That will go over well, I'm sure. Riiight. :)