Ask me if I prefer sanding off wallpaper glue

Well, to be honest, I don't like it one bit. That's what I've been doing for the last 3 hours in the master bedroom of the new house we just moved into. The geniuses who put up that gorgeous textured wallpaper some 15 years ago decided to plaster it right onto the drywall. No paint, no primer. So you're pretty much ripping off layers of drywall with each strip of wallpaper removed. But the glue, oh the glue. So thick, so much sanding. I'm covered in a white film of microscopic dust from sanded wallpaper glue.

Why? What'd you do today?

Good things

Sometimes this life blesses us with good things. And sometimes unpleasant things are good things in disguise.

We found renters for our house! It was a perfect match. They needed to move in quickly and we needed to find renters quickly. They signed the rental contract on Sunday night. The next day they informed us that now they can't move in until October, and they need some flexibility in coming up with the deposit, and they can only write a post-dated check for now, and so on... unpleasant details, and we will probably end up paying for all of September, but then we're done. This is still a good thing.

Rhett starts a new job at America West Bank in Layton tomorrow. It is not exactly the job he applied for, and it's even further from the job he wanted, but he is excited about it and sees it as a personal challenge to see how quickly he can advance to the job he is aiming for. So this is a very good thing.

Rhett was commission-only at his job in Las Vegas. When times are good, it's a good thing. When times are bad, it's a bad thing. But even during the rough times, he still did relatively well, at least compared to any income I personally have ever made. At this new job Rhett is starting at the bank, his annual income will be about what he used to make in one or two months. But this position is the starting point to grow into the position he truly wants. It is up to him to prove how quickly he is capable of earning that position. The long-term opportunity is huge, but the short-term income is small. I think times will be hard for a while. Humility is a good thing.

As you probably know (since I complained about it regularly), I was unemployed for my season spent in Las Vegas. I probably applied for more than 50 jobs at the 7 local hospitals in the Las Vegas valley. I was admittedly cocky - I thought I was a shoe-in. I had the skills and the experience for the jobs I was applying for. But my efforts never produced any results. So I re-did my resume, re-did my cover letter, re-applied for all the jobs, and nothing. And now, just 5 minutes ago, I got a phonecall from Centennial Hills Hospital, my #1 pick of hospitals that I applied at, the brand new hospital less than 5 miles from our Las Vegas home, and they offered me a job... Four months after I applied for it, on the very day Rhett accepted a job in Utah. I laughed out loud when I got that phone call; the irony is just priceless. At least I see that God has a sense of humor, and that is a good thing.

Viva Las Vegas

Rhett and I are currently living in Las Vegas. Rhett has been working down here for the last 4 years doing mortgage lending and financial planning. It has been a great opportunity for him, but we feel that it is probably time to start transitioning back to Utah. And so, we are looking for someone to rent or lease option our home. But here's the thing~ I got sick of emailing 15 pictures of our house to everyone who was slightly interested, because half the time the attachment wouldn't work right. So I thought to myself: self, you should post it on your blog and then it will be easy for people to see! But then I reminded myself to use caution online. It would be unwise to release all that personal information to those crazies out there-- you know, the ones who prey on dumb people who release too much personal information. So I decided to make a new blog full of house pictures to show to all the interested folks. So far, it's working swell.

So, my dear friends, if you'd like to see the full tour of our humble abode down here in Las Vegas, please see the following link: http://thevegashouse.blogspot.com/

I'll be sad to leave this house. It was just starting to feel like home. I wish I could transplant it across state lines without damaging the structural integrity. Whoever thought of mobile homes was on to something.

Check it out.
Here's a teaser...

This is the mucho grande walk-in closet of my dreams. It will be hard to part with. It is my second-favorite feature of the house. The first is the red walls in the kitchen. That was the first thing we did when we moved in - painted the kitchen red.