Today we met with our architect to start the process of scaling back our remodel plans. We have blueprints of the perfect house for us, but the bidding process revealed what we had suspected - it was out of our price range. Even the architect was surprised, though, at how far out it was. The long and short of it is that we aren't adding a second story. Instead of a secluded office on top of the garage with its own balcony and a view down the street I'll be working exactly seven feet four inches above where I'm working now, on the main floor of the house.

I don't mean to complain. We're still going to [re]build a bigger, better house on what is truly a one-in-a-million location in one of the best neighborhoods of Seattle. It will be attractive and fill our needs nicely. But I need to go through a decent mourning process for that perfect house before I'm ready to accept a good-enough house. Oh, and I think I'll buy a lottery ticket for tonight. Just in case.