As with many folks our age, we’ve been thinking of downsizing our home. But it looks like our downsizing may hold an upsized bonus.

I talked a while back about needing more shop space and was considering downsizing my machinery a bit to make more room. Now, it looks like I may not have to. My shop for the last 13 years has been my garage, with about 400 sq. ft. of space partially shared with household stuff. It’s never been enough.

So, for the last year or two we’ve been considering moving. We just don’t need a house this big anymore. Plus, the 750-mile trip (each way) to see our grandson has been killing us, so for some months now we’ve been looking for the ideal place. And, boy, did we find it.

The house is exactly the size we’re looking for, has many upgraded amenities, is in a wonderful community that probably doesn’t have a lunatic neighbor across the street, and is close enough to our grandson that we can leave after lunch and be with him in time for dinner. Best of all, it has something I’ve never had before:

That right there is a completely unfinished walk-out basement, with plenty of natural light. And it’s mine to do with as I wish. Well, almost. I’ll need to do some framing to create an enclosed storage area for household things, but the rest is mine, all mine. Even conservatively, I figure that I’ll triple the size of my shop. We’ll be moving there in the next month or so, and I can’t wait.

Setting up a new shop in a wonderful space like this will be the most fun I’ve ever had. I won’t be able to get started on it for a bit, of course, but you can expect progress reports as it all comes together.

A.J.