I’ve ordered blinds for the bedrooms and the big south-facing window at the back of the house, and entered into a contract with a local snow-removal company. A security consultant came by to assess the alarm system — rudimentary, inappropriate (because motion detectors) and obsolete. His company’s quote is sitting in my inbox. In short, I continue to spew money about the landscape.

The garage is full of flattened cardboard boxes and huge recycling bags stuffed with used packing paper, all waiting for pick-up by the moving company. That’s with several 4-cus, four 5-cu barrels, and most of the books still to go. And, of course, the pictures. But the radio, the TV and DVD player are fully functional, I can wash and dry the contents of the laundry basket, and I have identified a decent local pub. I can cook real meals, even for other people if they don’t mind dining with the stacked boxes of books. I’d call that initial operating capability.