We had the inspection for our new house today. It lasted 3 and a 1/2 hours. The house isn't that big, but the guy was thorough. He started in the basement and made his way to the attic. He'd explain what he was doing as he was going. I lost interest in the basement. My husband kept with him, instead. I chatted with the seller, who is also an acquaintance. We followed him and talked with each other instead of really listening to what he had to say. I drew the line of following when he went outside. I think I lasted maybe five minutes. It was too cold for me out there. My friend and I went inside had cocoa and a brownie and talked. Much more interesting than poking one's head in a chimney.

Mr. Inspector-man found four major things that really should be fixed: The garage roof needs to be replaced, the furnace chimney needs to be relined and repointed, the galvanized pipes need to be replaced with copper, and the termites need to be taken care of. It's not a cheap list.

We also met neighbors across the street. They have four children. We only actually met the husband and the two younger children, a boy and a girl (she's several months older than our daughter.) They were very nice. That is an important quality in a neighbor.

By the time we got home, it was rather late. We had spaghetti for dinner. That's one of our standbys when dinner is late or unplanned. It was tasty.

We had a surprise phone call from our realtor, concerning an offer on our house. We have to wait until tomorrow to find out about it, though.