Don't Fence Me In. . .

As we watched the painters starting the second week of our three-day fence painting project, one of my favorite neighbors asked, 'Will you ever live here full time?'

'This probably isn't the best time to ask that question,' I responded.

Not this year!

This is a story about a fence. Our fence. In America.

And it is about life in Greece and America. . .life in two very different worlds. 

American world

 

We are expats, living most of the year in Greece and a bit of the year in America. 

Agios Nikolaos

In many ways our two worlds, Agios Nikolaos in Greece's Mani Peninsula and Manson, on the shores of Lake Chelan in central Washington State, are similar. Both are popular tourist destinations. So popular that many who've visited now want longer stays, and as a result both areas are experiencing a housing construction boom that is covering once lush agricultural areas with mega-mansion sized homes.  

Manson 

In each of our world's a small village serves as the centerpiece.  Both tiny towns have short main streets lined with mom-and-pop shops. Each place is populated with many kind, wonderful people who welcome us back each time we travel between the two.

In Greece 

We live at the edge of our olive grove. Our place is reached by traveling a narrow, paved track road. 

The road home in Greece

Life in this world is an independent one. We plant gardens, tend olive groves and go about daily life pretty much as we choose. 

Sometimes we don't see our neighbors for days on end. Some are part-timers, others of us travel, so we do keep an eye out for each other in 'the hood'. When something seems amiss while the owner is away, we let them know.  And, if necessary, do a stop gap fix until they can return and address it.

Jackals are the menace in Greece

The neighborhood menaces are wild boar and jackal that roam the hillsides; the latter terrorizing small animals and in the case of the boars, destroying gardens and groves.

We've often compared our present-day Greek life to the one we lived in mid-century America when 'being neighborly' meant caring for and looking out after each other.

In America

Our home sits among 100+ others in a uniformly trimmed, gated community.  A gated community where security is high - a selling point for a long-distance owner such as us. Our neighbors are a mix of Americans, some retired, some still working. 

Road home in America

 

Here independent thought and preferences give way to the rules of the Homeowners Association, or HOA. A five-member board, elected from among the neighbors, is tasked with making and enforcing rules governing life within the development. 

My yard with approved plants

Such rules and regulations range from how long your garage door can be open to what you plant in your front yard and the time outdoor Christmas lights must be turned off each night as well as the length of time holiday decorations can be displayed.

Aside from an occasional cougar passing through we had thought this neighborhood was free of menaces. That was until this year when we became the target of the real neighborhood menace: the roaming 'concerned neighbor'. 

Gladys Kravitz a concerned neighbor from 'Bewitched'

Roaming the roads with camera in hand, the 'concerned neighbor' looks for violations of homeowner rules and reports those to the board. It seems the individual is a real-life Gladys Kravitz, the iconic nosy neighbor introduced to the world in American television's 'Bewitched'. 

Only here Gladys and her actions aren't funny. They can result in real damage to the homeowner because the HOA receives her reports and notifies the targeted homeowner of said infraction. A second report results in a fine.  Fines get increasingly substantial and could result in having a lien on your property.  

Don't Fence Me In . . .

For the past six years our annual sojourns back to Manson have been a pleasant mix of small home improvement projects and socializing with longtime friends and family. This year we returned with a 'to do' list that included a major fence re-staining project. 

Tom Sawyer and his fence

Made up of cedar slats and stretching 200 feet it encloses our lawn and flower gardens. Its solid stain was in need of touch up.

We'd secured a painter months ago -- while still in Greece -- and had the three-day project set to launch two days after our arrival.

Fence staining now in its third week - 

It would have gone according to plan had it not been for 'Gladys' and the HOA board.  

 

HOA Hell-abaloo*

*Hullabaloo means a commotion or fuss, and when combined with homeowner hell, it becomes 'hell-abaloo'. It is how I describe this visit to America.

Our three-day project became a three-week project. We've put stain on and taken stain off at the direction of the HOA.  (We were replacing the original solid stain but that isn't allowed! No siree! Only translucent stain can be used no matter the original color put on by the builder.) The price of the project has doubled.  

The painters - with help from us - finally got the fence finished within days of our return to Greece.

Beware - the coiled garden hose!

But this tumble into HOA Hellabaloo, has opened our eyes to the world of the American HOA. 

While we've become wiser, we've learned we aren't alone in this haphazard world of rule enforcement. Others living in (or who've moved out of) HOA's have shared horror stories galore. Among their horror stories:  

* In Arizona a friend who'd had three flowerpots in her front yard for six years was notified that one had to go. 

* Two people have been fined by different HOA's for leaving a garden hose visible in the front yard.  

* In a nearby development, homeowners had to cut down decade old trees planted long before the development was built, when a neighbor deemed them too high.  

* One resident had to repaint a new home being constructed in an HOA development after its board determined it a not an acceptable color.  

* Others have been cited for the bushes they plant - some for simply moving existing bushes into new locations in the flower bed.

The American Experience

Overall, this initiation into the HOA world has overshadowed all activities planned for our time in America. Any outing for anything other than 'the fence' was considered a mental health break - lunch with friends, a coffee, a trip to a nearby winery, a get-together with neighbors all provided short and much needed breaks from HOA life.  

Our painter hung in there

On the bright side our painter stayed with us. I might have walked off this job on its third day.  I hugged him goodbye when the project was completed.  He and his son are among the good guys. 

Shadow my 'therapy cat'

The folks at the hardware store recognize us on sight. They call us the HOA People. They have bent over backward to help us through the project. And they have a 16-year-old store cat, Shadow, who became my 'therapy cat'.

And we've gotten to know our immediate neighbors much better, and all are kind, caring people.  They have rallied and offered words of cheer and shared in our frustrations. Several offered to help sand and stain as they watched the project go into week three and the dollar signs mount. 

Perhaps the best thing is that we found 'neighborly' still exists here as well -- at least among those that we are lucky enough to have living near us. We now have a cadre of friends watching our place - Gladys has been outnumbered by the good guys. 

It has been an expat learning experience for us. Usually those of us choosing to live in a new culture have to focus on adapting to their new world.  As we've learned this month, the old world might require more adaption skills than does the new one.  

A foot in two worlds isn't as simple as it sounds. 

The Stone House on the Hill

It has definitely been a journey! Next time I write I am hoping to do so from The Stone House on the Hill in Greece!  Thanks for being with us as another chapter of expat life has unfolded.  Safe travels to you and yours~

Saving Time in a Bottle

Just when you become comfortable, maybe even complacent, change happens. 

In June the government issued new requirements for Greek residency permits for third-country expats, like us. 

The news was seismic in the expat community; as well could be the changes!

The game rules have changed: time out!

I liken it to changing the game rules once play has started. We are now on the field in the timeout period waiting for the referee to clarify the new rules of play so the game can begin again. 

And we are wondering if we still qualify as players or if we'll be booted.

Greek Game Changer

A seismic change in residency permit requirements

After nearly a decade of staticity, Greece's residency permit was recently overhauled.  It was lengthened from two to three years. The name changed from FIP (Financially Independent Persons) permit to the 'Residence Permit for third-country Nationals with Sufficient Resources'. 

But the most riveting change is the increase in the amount of income you must have to live in Greece.  

The joy in getting that plastic card, the permit, that lets us live in Greece

The monthly income requirement for individuals has nearly doubled, going from 2,000 to 3,500 euros ($3,824US). Two people, filing as a family, will be required to have 4,200 euros ($4,584US).  Because we originally applied as individuals we will need to show 7,000 euros a month in income.

The alternative to the increased monthly income is having stash of 72,000 euros ($78,663US) deposited in a Greek bank account (that's up from 48,000 euros or $45,089US). 

Mid-morning: tellers closed their windows despite waiting customers

The amounts are the only thing clearly defined in the new requirements. And for many expats and expat wannabes, the increases alone could put expat life out of reach. 

For others who could meet the income requirements, it will be a matter of how the proof of income is defined that determines whether or not they qualify. Must it be strictly a pension payment or will passive income, earned on investments, count? 

Greek banks aren't known for their customer service.  So that higher amount to have on deposit isn't a warm and fuzzy option for those of us who've dealt with them. Will savings accounts and investments not in Greek banks count toward the requirement?

'What if' and other questions. . .

We, and most of our American expat friends in the village, are in the midst of the permit renewal process. Applications and documentation for the previous requirements were submitted and accepted by the authorities months ago. Now we wonder if we will be required to start over, file addendums, or get grandfathered in (most unlikely of the scenarios).  

Unsettled times

Expat social get-togethers in recent weeks include a conversation or two on the 'have you heard anything about the permits?'  And occasionally we touch on - the proverbial elephant in the room - 'What if we don't qualify?'  

Needless to say, it has made for a somewhat unsettled summer in the third country expat community. (A 'third country national' is anyone who hails from a country outside Greece or the European Union). We've all had moments in which we ponder our vaguely uncertain futures. And we've all been a bit more reflective on our time here. So much so, that I've decided a song from my teenage years could be the theme song for the summer of 2024. . .

 Saving Time in a Bottle

If I could make days (in Greece) last forever. . .

Back in 1973 singer-songwriter Jim Croce sang a love song about making days last forever, making wishes come true and saving time in a bottle.  Back then, as teenagers, it seemed like days did last forever as we awaited adulthood. Why the need to bottle it? We were far too busy marking time to think about saving it. 

If I could make days last forever

If words could make wishes come true

I'd save every day like a treasure, and then

Again, I would spend them with you

I'd save every day (in the village) like a treasure. . .

Fast forward a half century and the song's lyrics are hitting home loud and clear this summer as a love song for expat life in Greece. I would fill my bottle with. . .

If I could save time in a bottle

The first thing that I'd like to do

Is to save every day 'til eternity passes away

Just to spend them with you

. . .Time spent watching summer sunsets. . .

I'd save summer sunsets and winter storms

. . . and winter storms. . .

The village parking lot after a winter storm

Time spent traveling the backroads. . .

Backroad adventures

. . .even time spent in traffic jams. . .

Local traffic jam

Time spent in the olive grove. . .

My friend Mary and I harvest olives

. . .from harvesting in October. . .

Princess and Maggie in the olive grove

. . . to walking amid wildflowers in March, exploring with my cats. . .

The Scout and our friend Captain Antonis

Time spent with friends - both Greek and expats from other lands. . .

Fellow Americans, friends, who we'd never have met in America

 and even fellow Americans whom we'd never have known back in the States. . .

House projects included, installing a new hot water tank

Times spent making improvements to our Stone House on the Hill . . . 

Enjoying our Stone House on the Hill

. . .and times spent enjoying it. . .

                                                              But there never seems to be enough time

                                                      To do the things you want to do once you find them. . .

Make the time ~ find the time ~ enjoy

Summer's end is fast approaching, and as with every season it does seem we never have enough time to do everything we want to do.  One thing is for sure this year, we are approaching all things with a bit more reflection and appreciation.

Thanks for the time you've spent with us today and to those of you who've followed the residency journey for as long as we've been on it: your continuing interest and support is most appreciated!  

Enjoy your travels and your everyday adventures. Until next time ~

The Dog Days of Summer

 The Dog Days of Summer came knocking at the door early this year!   And as a result, we are having a very long, very hot -- you might even say, a sweltering summer in Greece. 

Dog Days came knocking early this year

It is the kind of heat that had the ancient ones believing it could drive a person crazy. I am beginning to think I may prove them correct on that belief if it hangs around much longer.

Dog Days of Summer

There is nothing gentle about summer in Greece - it always arrives with a commanding presence. It never allows you to ease in gently but this year it seemed to break the door down with its sudden and intense early arrival. Usually, we brace for its stay during the months of July and August. This year it came in June and from the looks of it, I am pretty certain it plans to wear out its welcome before it departs. 

Morning on Stoupa Beach

While it hasn't deterred sun, sand and sea worshippers from descending upon our area for their shot of a postcard perfect summer Greek getaway, it has been impacting visitors elsewhere in the country.  Several times in June and again this last week officials in Athens closed the Acropolis from noon to 5 pm because of excessive heat. Red Cross workers handed out bottles of water to those visitors who arrived early and waited in long lines hoping to visit the site before gates closed at midday. 

There's little shade at Ancient Messene

Archeological sites throughout Greece have had similar reduced hours. Schools closed in June several times due to excessive heat. So intense is the heat, that the Greek government has ordered all the hard physical labor being done outside -- by construction and agricultural workers to delivery persons and all others-- be halted during the hottest times of the day.

In June six tourists in varying Greek locales died as result of heat related incidents.  Despite warnings by every organization under the sun (pun not intended) to stay out of the heat, these individuals found themselves in situations from which they couldn't escape the effects of heat. 

Our weather is in a holding pattern of hot

Helios, the Greek sun god, is paying little attention to the consequences of his daily chariot race across the sky and is bringing temperatures as high as 109F/43C. They've been hovering at the 95-99F/ 35-37C range in our area for several weeks.

Life Goes On

A village fisherman heads out at 7 pm 

'It's wearying, isn't it?'  a fellow expat remarked yesterday of the continuous heat.  Like us, she and her husband have been residents here for several years. The sun and the warmth of Greece were definitely among the reasons we all were attracted to the place. But too much of a good thing is simply too much.

A Summer sunbaked road near us in the Mani

When Greek speaking friends ask how we are, I usually reply with, 'Kala, alla poli zesti tora', meaning, in my less-than-perfect Greek,  'Good, but very hot now'.  The response is a sad shake of their head as they utter, 'Po, Po, Po!' 

Now 'Po, Po, Po!' is a versatile exclamation that can be used when happy or sad, disgusted or surprised and anything in between. Its meaning dependent on the facial expression and head movement that accompanies it. In this case it is close to an, 'Oh, dear!', 'Wow!' 'I hear you!'

Sunbaked bay leaf plant, daphne, as it is called here

The garden and grove at our Stone House on the Hill have taken a hit in recent weeks. We are struggling to keep our plants alive during this intense and lengthy heat wave.  I have an expanding 'morgue corner' of pots containing dead plants (including a lantana which grows in the wild around here) that couldn't beat this year's heat.  We have pretty much written off the olive crop this year as well.  

Our olives in July shouldn't look like this but they do

Even old, wizened olive trees need water during the summer, and we've had no rain for weeks and none coming any time soon. We have even started sprinkling them and with water as precious and scarce as it is here, you know we are taking this year's heat seriously.

Even Princess knows the value of A/C in summer

The chores and errands of the day are done as early in the morning as possible and then we become hermits in our darkened, air-conditioned house until we venture out at sunset, about 8:45 pm.  

Those Dog Days are Nothing New

The Dog Days have been around since ancient times. Back in Ancient Greece and Rome, the Dog Days arrival was marked by the rising of Sirius, the Dog Star, a part of the constellation, Canis Majoris, the Greater Dog. The star's rising coincided with the extremely hot days of summer; a time roughly from July 3 - August 11. 

Dog star Sirius.  Photo credit

It was believed to be a time of drought, disease and discomfort. Dog Days prompted unrest, unhappiness and bad luck; a time when men and dogs alike could be driven mad from the heat.

While researching the origins of Dog Days I happened upon another nod to extreme heat with a phrase attributed to Noel Coward in which he claimed that only 'Mad Dogs and Englishmen' would venture out into it.  The line was part of a song he is said to have written while traveling through Viet Nam.  In reading the lyrics, I found what I thought a perfect one for our Dog Days summer in Greece:

"In tropical climes there were certain times of the day

When the citizens retire'

To tear their clothes off and perspire."

Dog Days Sunsets are spectacular 

We close hoping that whatever season you are experiencing in your part of the world, it is a good one.  If you are traveling, stay safe, and heed the warnings of officials in the places you visit.  How's your weather - add a comment or drop us a line and let us know, we love hearing from you!

As always, thanks for the time you spent with us today.  

 

A Decade Later: Dwelling in Possibility

 Dwell in possibility! 

I recall wanting to shout it from the rooftops. It was my mantra, my motto, my mojo for a time, that summer a decade ago.  

The dream catcher journal of 2014

The phrase, 'Dwell in possibility' is excerpted from a poem by Emily Dickenson. It was imprinted on the journal cover I chose to record our adventures related to the purchase of The Stone House on the Hill in Greece; an adventure that was to take place in July 2014.  

Had we not dared to dwell in possibility. . .

Journal's opening, June 8, written in Kirkland, Washington, our U.S. home after our offer to purchase was accepted:

'We are older, 65 and soon to be 61. Too old? Perhaps, but I doubt it, 'We've met hikers and backpackers in Greece older than we are and they talk of the next hike, not their aches and pains.

We'd actually decided during our trip [earlier that spring] to give up the house in Greece idea for all the conservative reasons we could list: ages, health, security, work, time to travel and then we'd counter with all the reasons we should: price, value for what you pay, having a base in Europe from which to explore further and finally - it would be the 'final fling' -

Now, who in their right mind, would pass on a final fling, right?' 

Olive harvest at the Stone House on the Hill

My other favorite phrase of that summer was 'catching the daydream' because in many ways buying a house in the middle of an olive grove in the Greek countryside was a 'daydream' - a metaphor for taking a vacation from the life we had lived for years in a Seattle suburb. 

Sunday, June 22 - Aboard Delta flight from Seattle to Athens:

'And when we lift off, we will be enroute to that daydream - the last adventure, if you will. We've reached an age when putting off until tomorrow isn't the best option if we want to also have time to enjoy the adventure after catching that daydream.'

The week before that departure I had noted in the journal all the steps we'd taken to be able to buy a home in Greece including, the wiring of an appropriate number of US dollars to convert to the euro amount required to purchase, and the gathering of required documents. Purchasing a home could be done with only a tourist visa but Greece likes documents!

Kalamata, the second largest city in the Peloponnese

We hit the deck running our first morning in Kalamata with a visit to an accountant who accompanied us to the tax office where we each obtained a tax identification number. Then off to the bank to open an account. In order to do that we presented our passports, a U.S. utility bill to prove our address, a letter from the Mayor of Kirkland, Washington assuring we were citizens in good standing there, our federal income tax form, and our retirement pension documents. 

From the Notary's Office where closing would take place you could see 'our' house

Then we met an attorney, obtained for us by our realtor, who would review all documents related to the sale; property ownership, registration, tax incumbrances, property sale documents etc.  He assured us as he puffed on his cigarette, that everything was proceeding well. We were just waiting for 'one more document'. Closing would likely be July 10th or 12th.

The Stone House on the Hill, far right

Thursday, June 26 - after visiting' the house': 

'We visited 'the house' and its owners [unlike the U.S. owners and buyers often meet each other] I took copious notes on sewers, storage, meters, water, olives and ovens just to name a few. I was overwhelmed - far too overwhelmed at oven temperatures (in Celsius) and washing machines and the work that needs to be done in the garden and the grove.'

'They don't have wi-fi! And to have wi-fi we need a land line which requires as the name implies a line, which will require a pole - a big pole as in 500 euros or so! Should we buy a house in Greece in a future life, we will ask about the nearest telephone pole!'

Journal entries remind me that we filled our days searching for furniture stores, household goods and the like. Evenings were spent at local cafes and tavernas where we were to meet other expats and locals as we started creating a world for ourselves here.

Off to explore what would be our new world. . .

And with everything proceeding as it should be, or so we thought, we took a short trip road trip. But upon our return to our hotel base in neighboring Kardamyli village, we got our first taste of doing business in Greece - 'that piece of paper' hadn't yet been received.

Monday, July 7 - Kardamyli:

'We are now saying, 'if we get into the house' and 'if this deal falls through. . .'

The next day we learned 'that document' was actually a packet of documents still not filed by the seller's civil engineer. Once filed, they would be sent to Athens where it would take two weeks to review them and if approved, we could proceed with the purchase. The sellers were scheduled to fly out July 17 and we were leaving the 22nd. It wasn't looking very hopeful at that point.

The daydream went up in smoke. . .

Friday, July 11 - Kardamyli:

'And so, the daydreaming ends. We pulled out of the deal after learning the civil engineer had filed the paperwork but now there are tax returns that haven't been filed and the owners can't produce a proof of purchase either. . .The Stone House on the Hill is now an interesting, but very short chapter, in the Smith family history.'

We spent a couple days doing a breakneck search of properties to see if anything else in the area might be of interest. After walking untold numbers of plots of undeveloped land, seeing homes partially built and those that had been lived in and loved, we concluded there was nothing in the Mani for us. 

Our last couple days were spent wiring money back to the U.S. and saying goodbyes to people that we had met along the way.

A Decade Later

The Stone House on the Hill a decade later

Yet here I am in our Stone House on the Hill writing this on a July day ten years after that disappointing summer. That fickle hand of fate ultimately took us in the direction we were meant to take, but it forced us to take a most circuitous route to get there. We returned to Greece six months later and purchased the house after all the required paperwork had been obtained by the sellers. 

My too-blue-to-be-true view

When I look up from the computer screen my view is over the parched olive groves, the small villages that we consider home and the almost too-blue-to-be-true Messinian Bay. And I am glad I concluded my July journal by writing, 'I guess as doors open and close - even at this old age - we should be open to new adventures.'

Our Greek adventure continues. . .at even older ages! We continue to dwell in the possibilities it holds for us, perhaps these days, a bit tempered with time, however. We know many of you are currently pursuing your daydreams and are dwelling in the possibilities they hold. We hope that you will ultimately catch them and feel as we do, that they were worth the effort.  

As always to all of you, our wishes for safe travels and thanks for the time you spent with us today~