Why This Blog...

I recently bought a vacation condo/second home in St. Joseph, Michigan. The area, southwestern Michigan, is almost totally new to me. Oh sure, I've been there before, but only a few times. If you don't count driving through it on my way to Chicago from Detroit, I've been to St Joseph exactly 3 times... once on a day trip in the summer of 2007 to visit and photograph the city, and twice this month looking for condos. The second trip was the charm when I found just the sort of condo I was looking for. I'm waiting now to be "approved" by the condo association and to close on the property.

I'm excited by the prospect of having a second home in a resort area that I don't have to spend time maintaining. :-) OK, I'll have to spend some time initially because this condo is a "fixer upper". It's in good condition except that it's all a bit dated. I'll have to buy all new appliances and replace most of the cupboards, sinks, vanities, light fixtures, and throw on a new coat of paint. But I look forward to the decorating challenge! My hope is to have a good bit of it done by the start of summer so I can just kick back my heels and enjoy Discovering St Joseph!