Well, we should have known it was too good to last. When John and I moved to China in December 2003, our Reston townhouse sat vacant for FIVE MONTHS before we finally got tenants. Part of the problem was a totally incompetant property management company (the agent we originally hired retired after a company bought his business). Then, I had to shop around and locate another agent– all from overseas. In May 2005 though, we finally landed a renter. And that family has lived in our house ever since. They re-signed a lease last May, but then last month, they said they were returning to their native country in October. What a bummer. For us and for them. They don’t even want to leave, but the wife couldn’t get her immigration papers. Thanks a lot, Uncle Sam. A perfectly fine, upstanding couple… the husband has lived and worked in the States for two decades, and now they have to uproot and go. And it’s not just my tenants. I know others… like my friend Matt who married a Japanese woman. Her papers took a damn eternity– all in the name of homeland security. Total BS.

Anyway, my place is posted on Craigslist. Know anyone interested? If so, please spread the word. Thanks!