Why the Holidays Can Be the Best Time to Be a Homeowner
By Bill Primavera
As a homeowner, that magic time between Thanksgiving and New Year’s Day is my favorite time of year, each and every year.Others may prefer spring when the garden is awakening and we may spend most of our time outside, or mid- or late summer when the flower and vegetable gardens are in full bloom, or perhaps the fall when the rich colors of nature can take our breath away.
But for me, I’m most grateful for my home and the pleasures it affords in the dead of winter. That is the time when, finally, that stubborn grout weed that plagued my former property of some 40 years is in remission for the season, the leaves have been raked and composted and my time suddenly expands exponentially for other duties inside the house.
Those duties could include anything as big as finally summoning help to refinish that horrible guest room floor that has been hidden by a rug for decades or tiny chores like gluing on the knob to that antique chest that fell off 10 or 12 years ago or disguising all those furniture scratches with Old English Scratch Cover.
When my wife and I had an antiques shop as a part-time avocation, Old English was the single most important defense mechanism in our bag of tricks – short of refinishing – to make our furniture inventory look twice as good as when we bought it at auction.
The holiday season is also the time when our homes never looked cleaner or better with decorations, ready to receive guests.
As with every Christmas, my wife Margaret and I put up and decorate a tree, centered in front of a gorgeous Palladian-style window on the fifth floor of our building where passersby can see it, like a beacon that we’re there, welcoming in the holiday season.
For some years, I have written about my journey as the owner of an antique house planning to sell my home and all the preparations that went into it. It gave me a lot of material to write about. Now, I enjoy the maintenance-free habitat of Trump Park Residences, where all I have to do is enjoy our beautiful surroundings and have someone else do the grunt work outside. (And they do it so beautifully.)
The nicest thing I enjoy about my current living arrangement is being able to stay within the same community where basically I grew up (grew old, actually) and having friends I’ve known for decades.
Especially this season, which become more precious as I get older, I’m looking forward to using my extra holiday time to toast in the new year, once again singing Auld Lang Syne and trying to remember what the heck those words mean. It’s much like trying to remember where I’ve placed the remote control for the building’s garage door opener.
Bill Primavera is a Realtor® associated with William Raveis Real Estate and founder of Primavera Public Relations, Inc., the longest-running public relations agency in Westchester (www.PrimaveraPR.com), specializing in lifestyles, real estate and development. To engage the services of Bill Primavera and his team to market your home for sale, call 914-522-2076.
Examiner Media – Keeping you informed with professionally-reported local news, features, and sports coverage.