the week that was

More like the two weeks that were, actually.
Two days after my defense, we headed out to house-hunt in Syracuse. We made a road trip out of it, of course, and stopped at the RV/MH Hall of Fame in Elkart, IN, where they have wonderful things like this:

We also went to the Toledo Museum of Art on the way over. It’s known for its glass collections, but it also has one of the best displays of Attic and Hellenic pieces that I’ve seen in the middle of the country. The Monkey Business exhibit wasn’t open yet when we were there, so we’ll go back to see it on the next trip across. (If I was going to be around in the fall, I’d definitely see the planned Graphic Novels exhibit.) We also had a chance to drive around a bit, and I think Toledo is my favorite ruined city. I don’t quite know why, but there’s something about it that’s quite different from Detroit.
After that, things are pretty much a blur. We got into town on Sunday and drove around getting a feel for what’s where. (Mr. Husband had started his research on the town months ago and then come over a couple weeks prior for the same purpose, so it wasn’t as wander-y a day as one might think.) We looked at about 10 homes with a real estate agent on Monday, prequalified the mortgage Tuesday morning, made an offer Tuesday afternoon, signed the contracts Wednesday, and did the house inspection Friday.
And since that was all we needed to be physically present for, we started back home on Saturday. Passing through Cleveland, we had a wonderful visit and dinner with Kenny. I had planned to also visit the Aquarium and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, but a twisted ankle canceled those out. And so on Sunday we drove all the way from Cleveland to St. Paul, which is really too far for one day.