Yup, buying a house is a bitch, don’t let anyone try to tell you any different. The idea of buying a house is quite romantic; the prospect of ownership, the feeling of freedom, truly being the master of one’s domain – these are all appealing in theory – but the process to get to this magical state of ownership is one brimming with stress and emotional pain.
Having said that, it seems that we are finally moving towards the homestretch. We’ve found our home, we’ve signed contracts, we’re jumping through all the necessary hoops, and we’re closing in on a closing date. As much hell as this process has been – and it has been complete hell – I’m happy that we’ve done this. Home ownership is something I’ve long wanted and I’m already planning my first home improvement projects.
Home ownership also allows me to explore a hobby I’ve long wanted to get into: bee keeping. As many of you may know, I already brew beer and make cheese. Bee keeping is a natural progression of my DIY personality. I also love to garden – a practice I haven’t been able to partake in for quite some time due to apartment living – and keeping bees will greatly benefit my garden as well as my neighbor’s gardens.
So life has been hectic to say the least. All this and I have a ten month old who’s determined to learn how to walk before she rightfully should. It’s no wonder I haven’t had much time to play many video games these days.
Except Mario Kart. I’ve made time to blast through some Mario Kart. My Nintendo ID is the same as my PSN ID for those that may want to do some racing sometime.
And be sure to check out my first podcast in a looooooong time with Julian and Nick. Hopefully I’ll be back to more regularly contributing sooner than later – especially once the house stuff is all done.
That’s all for now. Happy gaming!
Bees you say?
Which season was that from? I saw them all up to the beginning of season 4.
Season 1 finale
Congrats!
bee keeping huh? that's what Sherlock Holmes did when he retired. You are obviously a man of class.
Congratulations on your home!
Cool, man! Congrats!
A possible useful anecdote: When I was helping at a homebrew competition, a bee flew into our boil. We fished him out and the beer is still delicious. So, if this happens to you, fear not!
Did you end up liking Metro Last Light, JBone? I still haven't played it. I'm waiting till I get a PS4 to play it, they're upgrading the visuals, doing gameplay tweaks and releasing both Metro 2033 and Last Light on next gen consoles with upgraded fixins, and you will be able to get them separate or in a bundle.
Remember how I was saying a year ago that I was going to wait to buy a next gen console, and just buy a PS3 in the meantime while I wait? I probably won't be doing any of that, almost every single game I wanted on PS3 is getting ported to next gen consoles in some fashion. Tomb Raider is coming out gussied up for next gen, the whole Metro series, The Last of Us, and some others. Basically if I wanted to get a PS3 at this point I'd only be getting it for Demon's Souls, and I bet it's only a matter of time before that gets a re-release on PS4, or just ported with Playstation Now. The PS4 is the new PS3, who would've known?
I did end up playing Metro Last Light and found it enjoyable even though it was incredibly linear. I think 2033 took more risks and was a more interesting game, while Last Light was much much more safer and clean. You should still dig them though.
And yeah, I'm gonna end up with a PS4 either at the end of this year or the beginning of next year. I can't rationalize getting one just yet, and all the good games are coming out in 2015 with few exceptions (I can wait for a game like Destiny). I hope those ports come out as value games. I loved Tomb Raider and The Last of Us, but I'm not seeing enough of an update to warrant a full price game - I'm hoping for $20-$30 for those. That seems fair.
I can imagine how moving and getting a new house is a bitch. Glad to see it's all over for you.
As for the bees, ever considered a bee beard? :P
Beer, cheese, and now bee keeping. Keep this up and your next hobby will be an eatery with tasty items involving beer, cheese, and maybe honey. CONGRATS ON THE HOUSE! That sir is one heck of a pickup!
I figure if civilization crumbles I'll be quite useful as someone who can procur alcohol, honey, and cheeses!
Overall I'd say buying a house is worth it, but don't think the headaches will stop once you close on it (I bought one 5 years ago). You start to realize just how easy it was to rent once you have to pay to replace the AC, to repaint, to re-shingle, to fix plumbing, etc. But I'm still glad I'm an owner as opposed to a renter. I like doing home improvement projects, and the overall freedom that goes with owning a home is great.
Heard on that. Thankfully the seller totally remodeled so there is very little that will "have" to be done right away, or even in the near future (Aside from replacing the water heater, but that's not too bad a thing).
Really incredibly late reading and commenting on this, but you can make mead now!