Sitting Hopes

I think I may have found my house sitter for the summer. After a month of frustration, I finally found a girl that (knock on wood) will be sitting for me this summer. After I put my ad on a house sitting page, I got smacked with offers. A lot of them were retired folks that apparently do this for some inexpensive travel in their twilight years. There were some really great people, but they were also a bit misleading. They answered my ad saying they were interested in the job; however, they didn't just answer my ad, but many ads. When I would contact them with the details, they replied that they had already decided on another offer. It was really frustrating.

I got a couple of local people answering as well. One couple in Park City wanted to relocate to the city. They were interested in staying in my home so they could decide where they wanted to live. I read this as, "your house and needs are secondary, what is important is that we live in a place for free so we can decide if we want to move to the city." It became easy to read into how people formed their responses as to what their true intentions were. I think my favorite response was from a family member for a couple in West Jordan (a suburb of SLC). She was writing to say that her brother and sister-in-law with their 2 teenage kids needed a place to live for the summer, and this would be great because it would let them get ahead on their bills while having someone stay the house. Oh Lucky Me!!! Am I starting a charity here? Did my ad say Hostel de la Bindy? NO!!! Read the ad schmuck....it says no kids. That means NO KIDS!!! The reason I said no kids is because I don't want the wear and tear on my home. I don't care how angelic people think their kids are, kids are kids. I am very aware of the energy and destruction caused by children, even teenagers. I also said no animals, no drinkers, no smokers, and no party people. I did so because its MY house. It was painfully obvious that these people were just looking to leech off someone.

Just as I was about to give up, a new profile came up from a local girl who has house sat for friends and family in Utah and Idaho. She is 25, anally clean (a plus), works downtown, already works out at a gym in Sugarhouse, appears very intelligent, and most importantly wants me to know she is very responsible and has many references. My home is her up most concern, so that I can feel comfortable knowing everything is taken care of. I will have to hire lawn service, but I expected I would have to anyway. Her parents are Master Gardeners, so she has a lot of experience in maintaining gardens.

It appears we have an "agreement," so the next thing I have to do is a credit check. That usually tells you how responsible a person really is. I will also schedule a time to meet with her in person. I can get a real feel for people within a few minutes of meeting them. I will also be drawing up a legal document kind of like a rental agreement. If all goes well, I will be leaving in June and be living "The Life" in Hawaii for the summer.

Wish me Luck!