Spring and Home?

Ah, it finally seems like Spring! It feels funny to write that, as the weather has been pretty warm for the past few weeks. The change is that, since we’ve had a few big rains, the leaves are now actually appearing on the trees! It looks like this outside all of my windows:

Oh! And I’ve been in my house for a year now! Two days ago was the anniversary of the first night I slept in Hitchin’ Post. It doesn’t quite seem like a year has passed. For heaven’s sake, I still have dried beans and grains from when I moved in! How many times have I cooked for myself? How many events have I hosted? I can count those things on my two hands (and that’s an upward estimate). I suppose one thing is indicative of the length of time I’ve been here; it’s time to change my shower curtain.

Speaking of my house, this seems like a good opportunity to explain a little about where I live. At the Farm, part of our compensation package is room and board. Based on our job level and tenure, we are assigned one of the Farm’s several housing options. Here’s what mine looks like:

Ok, not really, but I did find out last week just what my house is worth as part of my salary. Apparently, for my position I can afford to live in the Berkshires in a two-ish room plumbed cabin for $400 a month. Part of me thinks my little piece of heaven here is worth just a little more than that. But I guess I’m partial.

So for those of you who don’t know, I live on the property, just down the lane from where I work, and a stone’s throw away from our clients’ houses. As a matter of fact, I do believe my neighbors up the hill could look right in my bedroom windows.

Hmm. In other news, I’ve been reading the blog of a group of women (I've put a little linky right over on the sidey) who are currently globe-trotting. What I’ve learned from them has been both exciting and discouraging. I was inspired by their courage to drop everything and hit the road for a year. And then I read about their travel budget: $15,000. I have managed to save one-third of that. In a year and a half. The worst part is that they are specifically avoiding expensive countries. Like all of Europe. They do live a little more highly than I was planning, and I’ll be volunteering, which is something they are not doing, but I’m still a little worried. I shouldn’t be so worried; I still have time to plan, and what I want to do, for less than a year, shouldn’t be too expensive. Of course, as long as I’m smart and don’t stay out there until I run out of money, I should be ok. Right?