An April Fool’s Day Gambit – We’re Out of Here!

I’ve always cherished the conceit that this blog attracts a more intelligent class of reader. I may have proved it with this April Fool’s Day post, which didn’t seem to fool very many people. I’ve bolded the “hints” I tried to drop:

I’ve said before that a lot of what happens on the homestead goes on behind the scenes as it were, without ever reaching the blog. One such case proves to be rather definitive. The time has come to reveal that we’re leaving the homestead.

We’d made some discrete inquiries about what our land and compound might sell for, purely out of curiosity. That led to some key representation on the national level, and we find that we’re the subject of a rather head spinning bidding war! We can’t, of course, provide too many details at the moment, but the latest price we’ve heard is over $1.25 million. And climbing.

stock photo Tuscan villa

I found this photo on beachamconstruction.com, and captioned it “Goodbye Rainforest, hello, Tuscany!”

It’s all rather hard to believe, especially in the current abysmal housing market, but they tell us that key properties will always sell well, no matter what.

That’s just fine, because I think we’ve all pretty much had it with this lifestyle. Let someone with the resources to develop it properly have a shot at it, without relying on backbreaking labor, like we have.

As you can imagine, this is more than enough to live on for a family that’s so used to frugality. Through family connections, we will move shortly to a villa we’re purchasing in Tuscany. Michelle says she’ll love growing tomatoes without the greenhouse, and not caring if they all die. I’m looking forward to hanging out by the backyard swimming pool and drinking local wines! Aly’s a bit concerned about the long commute home from college, but it appears we’ll be able to afford that when the time comes.

Because this blog has a lot of “how to” information for people seeking a more self reliant lifestyle, we’ll leave it up for a while longer. We’ll keep posting* to it to let you know the outcome of the bidding, and detail some of the process of moving our stuff off the property and preparing it for new owners. [*Note that I indicated there would be a reason to come back to the blog April 2nd—I didn’t dare risk driving readers away!] After that, we’ll probably take it all down, probably within the next year.

If this sounds too good to be true, and something you might want in on, please contact us in the comments section below, and we’ll send you information on how to contact our representatives. A word to the wise, however—a bid with the current date isn’t absolutely necessary, but it might help.

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10 Responses to An April Fool’s Day Gambit – We’re Out of Here!

  1. Susan says:

    Very good….you almost had me. But, the pool is too small for the grand life you painted. And, who puts a fountain by their pool? I wouldn’t want to be the one that has to clean the pool area after the birds.

  2. Shemaya says:

    Gotta be April fools… though I didn’t catch on until the second reading looking at the date. Or maybe it’s real!

    But since I’m writing anyhow, just want to say congratulations to Aly on all your exciting college and archaeology news. Now I could’ve written with that in the first place! It’s very impressive, and I’ve been rooting for you, as I’ve been reading progress on the blog. Wishing you a marvelous time with all of it.

    Best wishes to you all — continuing in Alaska, or off to Tuscany!

    Shemaya (Dave and Anke’s sailing friend)

  3. Billy says:

    Are you sure you want to do this? At midnight of the the collapse of human industrial civilization, you’re exchanging a largely self-sufficient lifestyle for a retirement condo plus cash. Have you considered renting it out?

  4. Heidi Partin says:

    I don’t believe you. April fool’s.

    Heidi

  5. Don says:

    And a happy April 1 to you too, Mark!

  6. Mark Zeiger says:

    Hi Billy–I agree with your reasoning.

  7. Mark Zeiger says:

    Hi Sheymaya!

    Aly appreciates your congratulations and encouragement, as do we!

    We hope you’re well. We hear Dave and Anke are back in the country. I think they’re planning to stop and see you on their way back to Alaska? Hope so!

    Be well,

    Mark

  8. Mark Zeiger says:

    Susan, I love your reasons for doubting this! Personally, I think a fountain by the pool would be great–of course, I’d accept a pool under just about any conditions, even with the extra chore of cleaning up after the birds. Happy April Fool’s Day!

    Mark

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