I’m feeling scattered again. Oh, I don’t like to feel scattered! I like to know the boundaries of my world, as they constitute my comfort zone. The perimeter can be very extensive, but I so very much like to be aware of what the perimeter is.
I’ve been house hunting and man hunting — up to my internet mischief. It’s exhausting! Add to that the cold that is trying to catch me. My throat is a battleground.
The house hunting is proving to be very similar to the internet dating experience. I’ve been to view several houses lately, and what they look like in real life is a far cry from what they look like in their on-line photos. Rooms look impressively spacious, only to find they are tiny cracker boxes. Earlier this year I was intent on finding a home with a view, maximizing the tranquility of my sphere –proximity to work, neighborhood safety, proximity to my family, and a view of mountains and salt water were my top priorities. Frustrated with that, I refocused on vacation properties. I thought I could buy a weekend home with the view and tranquility, and remain in my current home for the day-to-day living. I’ve since reconsidered matters again, now that my Brutus is in school, and raised the school ratings above the desire for a view. It has come to my attention that we don’t live in a particularly good school region, so I would like my boys to have the benefit of better schools and the stability to grow up with the same set of people. Better views and better schools come at a price, so a similar home to the one I have is far beyond my means. While there are beautiful and affordable homes available the further one extends from the city, and there are pockets of better schools in the outlying regions, the commute and proximity to family are prohibitive. I don’t want to add any further stress to the world in which I live, so I have to be mindful of the effects of a difficult commute.
Add to this the pursuit of togetherness. If only I knew what I wanted, or what would work best for me. I know much of what I don’t want, but to quantify what I want and what I’m capable of is very difficult. So far, it’s been an iterative process that has consumed years of my life, because I don’t know how else to approach it. The current mission statement that best describes what I think I want is “a respectful, respectable alpha male sex machine who is okay with me having my way when it’s important to me“. In a nutshell. Ha!
Meeting men is easy enough (with the online venue). Determining a definite ‘no’ is easy enough as well. Encountering a possible ‘maybe’ is very, very rare, and if it happens, I don’t know what to do next, other than tread softly, try not to cast forth too many pearls, and hope to remain clear headed and open minded. None of which I am particularly good at. (Oh, how my dad would cringe at my split infinitives and dangling participles, were he alive and reading this.)
It’s all so hard for me! I just want to be settled down. To know where home is. To know with whom my heart is safely entrusted. I want a simple and beautiful life. (Yes, I know, I know, I already have a simple and beautiful life.)
