(from wikimedia, def not MY garage).

It was not my initial plan to live in my garage for a few weeks. When I brought this not-quite-whim up to my therapist, she thought it was a great idea and worth trying.

And if I don’t like it, I can always fall back on a motel room in the end, anyway.

In short, once I clear out of the house officially and they haul it off, I’m going to be in my garage. It’s got air conditioning and a refrigerator, and lights, and I can keep the dogs in there with me reasonably well. Not the whole garage–there’s a workshop in the back probably 8 x 12 feet that’s air conditioned.

So far, so good–and I have my fold out mat, my yoga mat, sleeping bag and sheets, and I can sleep out there. Hell, I remembered it was mine and dad’s go-to place in case the power was out for days on end and we could hook up the generator and sleep relatively well. Then again, the generator sounded like someone was mowing all night long so I never slept in there for too long, now that I think about it.

But it was an option.

A helluva lot cheaper option.

Missing some basic amenities, of course…like plumbing, I’ll admit. And it’s small as hell.

A few things made me think hard about cancelling my motel arrangements last week. The biggest one was care for the dogs. They probably won’t like being stuck in the garage room, even with the air conditioning, but they’ll be safe and out of the mosquitoes. And even if I had a hotel room, they couldn’t run around and do whatever they wanted, anyway. The new one would run out the door first thing and I’d never find him again! At least with the garage I have two doors to work with to contain him til I can get the leash on.

Plus, every time there’s noise, they’re both hella barkers. I can see us getting kicked out within two days because of the noise of them barking at everyone passing by the room. That’s not gonna work out at all.

Another thing is while the motel was across from my workplace, I’d still be driving 20 miles back home to check on the property and make sure things were good (and let the dogs run and play, one on a leash), and then go back. I’d be spending lots on a pet friendly room and driving double. Not a good idea–I don’t have that much freaking money.

And yes, the plumbing issue is an issue. But I’ve dealt with no plumbing before, as a kid and during some hurricanes and power-outages. If you’re careful, there are plenty of ways to get good and clean in between showers. I can do a day plan to go to the gym and work out like crazy and shower there, too…at least, til I get my own gym built and put together.

Regarding the toilet, of course, I’m sure the outhouses I used to have to use at deer leases and other no-plumbing locations are worse than the under $20 porta-potty creation I got directions for. That doesn’t bother me, and neither does disposal, since I’d be a good distance from the burnpile and adding to it the next few weeks. The weather’s getting cooler and I have plenty of odor-eating absorbent material to use the next few weeks (or however long it will take).

I also plan to stay home as an experiment because I have tons of things to do on the property, even without a house. There are limbs and garbage to pick up, for one. Tomorrow someone’s coming to take my storage shed and I’ve gotta prep the ground for my new one. I have to fill in the deep holes made by removed carport posts before all the movers show up (and get stuck or break their legs and sue me).

And when my new storage building shows up, I’ve got that one to work on and move things out to it. I won’t be dragging the gym stuff with me without movers’ help, but I can lay out the floor, get electricity put in (and a window unit), get it nice and climate controlled, and then the dogs can spend time out there with a lot more room to run around during the day, their beds, and food.

I can’t wait to get the measuring right and put down that rubber gym floor to make a real one, ready to put all that equipment on and protect it. I need a project to keep me going, and as useful and good as research and the internet can be…I would go nuts just sitting in a motel room with the dogs every night for three or four weeks.

By my estimate, the dogs will only be stuck in that garage with me a week and a half at the most. I’m good on that. The clock starts when I’m officially out of the house, sometime later this week, Wednesday or Thursday from the sound of things. And the day the house gets moved, I’ll put a phone call through and tell them to get my shed over here pronto so I can work on it. I’ll have all the materials set and ready to go.

I’m just tickled pink that I’ll be able to get some things settled before my house even shows up without wasting too much gas. I’m really pleased about that…it’s just getting the rest of this crap out of here right now that’s testing me. I’ve got a headache and it won’t quit raining (at least the past two days, it’s only rained 10 minutes a pop…during the day).

I’ve got a few more holes to fill in the yard, so I’d better get to that first.