A day. A good one, overall.

[kyrielle]

Went out to my parents' house and Scott helped with lifting and moving so I could access some of the trunks (some: others are in places that are going to need some real clearing to get to, and knowing what was in the ones we did get to, I can wait). Most contained camping gear. One contained old fabrics, looking to be in good shape. I didn't recognize them, or take them out to see what they were, much. At some point I will need to take them out, store them elsewhere, get photos to see if any of my relatives recognize them from anywhere....

I took a lot of photos of Newberg as well as some inside the house. I am still uploading those photos (and I have no intent of staying up until they complete!) but the ones that have made it up are at http://www.flickr.com/photos/kyrielle/archives/date-posted/2007/01/21/ and the rest will follow for a total of 23 (looks like 13 have made it as I type this). I'd expect them all up by 1 or 2 am Pacific at the latest, so if you're reading this after that, they probably made it there. (It may be worth viewing the individual photos to see my notes, if you're curious about my memories. A couple are just photos of something I saw but a lot have memories attached and I wrote them up in the photo description.)

Went through the top part of the mementos/photos box I found on Friday. I am beside myself with glee: many many of Dad's photos (including old ones on slide - I shall definitely need to look into what's involved scanning slides!). I haven't made it to the bottom of the box yet. I am hoping it will have Kathryn's baby book, as I've seen it only once in my life that I can recall, and it was then occupying the old metal desk that Dad consigned to the dump later. I assume the baby book was not sent with it, of course, but I've no idea where it did end up. In one of these boxes seems probable, but there are a lot of boxes.

We won money in the Powerball drawing on Saturday. Of course, we did not win enough money to pay for the ticket. Oh well! Not like I really expected any different. Well, okay, I did - I expected not to win anything at all. ;) So almost covering the cost of the ticket in the first place is not too bad, overall.

I still have to work on the legal bits of this. Ugh. Estimating the value of their personal possessions is my current demon. Not from having to go through the things - there's a comfort in the memories they evoke. But for one main reason, and one minor secondary. The secondary is that it reduces them to a dollar amount, but really, that's what legal stuff and economic stuff does. Memories don't quantify that way (probably just as well). The major is that I simply have no clue how to get an appropriate value. They said it needs to be estimated / approximate, but I don't even know enough to get near on some of it, and it's making me very twitchy and unhappy. I can't estimate it. I don't have the skills or knowledge to be confident I'd even be within an order of magnitude of the actual value. And it's driving me buggy. (That has to be done by the end of February, basically. And I need to get a realtor out to see what they think the fair market value of the house would be, for purposes of confirming (or not) the tax value listing for use in this process. That, however, is not so bad - it's just a scheduling issue. I can handle those. It's the rest of it, which I feel like I am basically being told to make up a random number for a legal process - not my favorite idea ever! - that has me stressed. Worse, even the stuff I know the value on, I know the value new - not now. Argh!)

I am also beginning to be overwhelmed by the realization of how much stuff there is to go through, but it's not as bad as it could be. I just am beginning to think I may (when it gets a little easier) need another week off work just to do that. Now that I can maybe face it for more than 15 minutes at a time without wanting to start crying. There's a certain comfort in some of these - the memories they bring back! Also a lot of stress as I realize...I have all this stuff to deal with. Argh. At least the house has a heat pump. I am ever so very grateful for that. It was not that long ago that it had only the woodstove. I would have had little choice but to live there during the cold snap and try to keep the house warm enough to preserve the pipes, if not for that heat pump. (And it made things more comfortable for Mom during her illness. Although not for Dad, since Mom and Dad's favored temperature ranges sat a few degrees apart even at their closest match. He got to live in a 74-degree house for that time. After she died, he turned it down to 68 or 70 - I forget which - and immediately felt too cold; he'd adapted! So he moved it back up and then began stepping down by 1 degree, at least I think that was the plan.)

And it's really fairly late and I should go to bed. 15 of the photos are now up!

Comments

[katbyte.livejournal.com]

You might consider an auction house, or estate person to estimate the value on things. I have no idea what your plans are for the items in the house, but that can be a way to get it done quickly and efficiently. Also a way to get it cleaned out, depending on what you want or need to keep. This would be especially handy if there are antiques to deal with.

Good luck, it is a hard and cleansing process, I know.

Also, there might be some formula you use when you find the value of the property, as far as the contents goes. Maybe an estate attorney can tell you.

[kyrielle]

The probate attorney I am working with is the one who told me to estimate it, and looked at me like I had two heads when I asked if there was some kind of way to get an appraisal. I want to keep some of this stuff, so I don't feel entirely comfortable involving someone whose main interest is their right to sell it. Neither do I actually know how to find these people. I tried a web search last night and the only one so far was a consignment place....

[kyrielle]

I should add that you are right. I am frustrated by the process and not being able to figure out how to find anyone. I am frustrated with the attorney who is very skilled (in theory, I suppose I should wait and see results) and is the guy who handles all the wills and probate cases at this office, but who has some lacks as a people person. I will take skills with the law over skills with the client in a lawyer, but I'd rather have both. I am frustrated with a lawyer who thinks telling me to come up with the figure on my own will magically let me do it. I'm frustrated with having to try to put a dollar amount on an accumulation of stuff this large, especially given what the stuff and the situation means to me. It hurts.

I'm sorry if my first reply was snappish, and I think it was. I just...am very frustrated...and I don't have a freaking clue how to go about doing some of this stuff that needs to be done. Or even where to find help on it, say, someone who actually knows who does this stuff. :P

[katbyte.livejournal.com]

Oh, definitely not a snappish answer at all!! I know how frustrating it is. Having a good communication with your attorney is important, and you should have both a skilled guy and a people guy at the same time. I think the job is just overwhelming. Maybe a real estate person could help you. They must deal with estates and might know who to call. Sometimes they are hard to find. Also, check the paper for estate auctions. Might give you a clue who to call at least.

Wish I knew more to help. I tried to have a garage sale when my mother died, but I just could not do it. I gave everything we did not want to charity. It was just too hard to go through everything and put a dollar amount on things.

[kyrielle]

Yeah, I'm not sure what I'll do exactly. I have time to think about what gets sold and all, but the value is needed by March, so I'm focussing on that. I know some things I will keep (unless another family member desperately wants them more than I do). I know others are not worth anything in particular to family. There's some things I don't know about, and some things that I know have family history but I don't know the history and I'm not interested in the objects - those I will see if anyone else in the family wants, first. (Easy to say; I have the feeling it won't be at all fun to actually do and sort out, though.)

Bleh. I'll try asking a realtor.

[katbyte.livejournal.com]

I really wish you lots of luck with dealing with it all. We can give some moral support anyway.

[canyoncat.livejournal.com]

I've really enjoyed following these little trips down Memory Lane with the photos. It makes me think I should go into Cambridge someday and take some pix of my old stomping grounds. It's been ages since I've been there. Perhaps when spring time comes.

Reading about all of the work that you have to with settling affairs makes me cringe. I know all of that is going to fall on me when my mom goes and on Robin when her mom goes and I do not look forward to it in the least. There is just so. much. STUFF. :\

[kayre]

You might want to look into how much it costs to have the slides transferred to CD.

And yeah, I don't envy you dealing with the stuff alone-- it was pretty overwhelming for 4 of us. When the time comes, keep all you want; give away lots; and then consider an auction?

[kyrielle]

I was thinking of scanning them myself. It would make more sense to pay someone to do it, but I'm afraid to let them out of my hands! Silly. Very, very silly. I will try to look into it. It will take forever because there's too much other CRAP on the top of the to-do list.

You misunderstand my issue with the stuff. Figuring out what to keep and then sell or give is not the hard part. For the estate process, to determine if it's taxable, I have to tell them what the whole batch (regardless of what is done with it is) is WORTH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

THAT is a real problem because I have no freaking clue.