The hunt for a house

Sorry about the long silence, everyone. I was in the Coachella Valley and Yucca Valley (California) with Matthias all week, looking for a new home. It was an exhausting search, and after looking at way too many properties, we still have not found a new house. We have decided to rent! We didn't find a rental house, either, but we figured we could probably do that over the internet, sight unseen. As long as we can find a house that we can rent for a short time, that is. It's a long story.

I met Matthias in Phoenix, AZ last Tuesday. We had one of our cars there, and we needed to get it to Palm Springs. So after spending some time with some friends, we got in the car and drove the 4 hours. More accurately, I drove while Matthias slept. He had just gotten back from Hong Kong, had been up for way too many days/hours in row, and needed to rest. I enjoyed the sight of the saguaro cactus along the way.

We spent the next day in Yucca Valley and Joshua Tree (which is only about 5 minutes from Yucca Valley), driving around, getting a feeling for that area. What I like about that area, versus Palm Springs, is that it is about 3,000 feet higher, and therefore, about 9 or 10 degrees cooler. I think that might be a good thing. It is also more affordable than Palm Springs. The disadvantage is that it is further away from the primary shopping and action of Palm Springs. So it is somewhat isolated. That wouldn't be a new thing for us, so I don't necessarily see too much of a disadvantage there. I love the area, in terms of its ruggedness and beauty. I also found out from the realtor there that Bev Doolittle has a house in the area. How interesting is that?!? For some reason, I always pictured Bev Doolittle living in Wyoming or Montana or someplace like that. Don't ask me why.

Anyway, we spent a couple of days looking in the Palm Springs area for houses, and did look at properties in Yucca Valley and Joshua Tree, as well. Despite our best efforts, and the help of the two Realtors we had working with us there, the perfect house just didn't show itself to us. I must say, coming from Colorado, the housing market in California is a shock to the pocketbook. !!! The one house that seems to have left a mark in my brain was the one with the most beautiful backyard. I loved that backyard, but the house was less than noteworthy. We aren't going to buy a house for just the backyard!!! Pools are so inviting when it's 100 degrees F outside...

Our Salida house closes on June 15th, so I will be focusing on packing and saying good bye to little Salida. Hopefully, some art will be squeezed in soon. When I do have some new art to show, you will be the first ones to see it, as always!