The Trifecta of Happiness.

Boy oh boy, the things you can learn on the interwebs, I tell you what.  Just now, for instance, in the space of about 0.59 seconds (give or take), I learned that the Trifecta of Happiness is:

• Oxytocin, dopamine, and serotonin; and/or
• Good friendships, a lover, and work; and/or
• The body, mind, and soul.

Technical alert: I didn't actually learn all of that in 0.59 seconds.  I wish I could learn that quickly! I should've said that I was able to pull up that information via my favorite search engine in 0.59 seconds.  

It's a curious phenomenon, this idea that things always need to happen in threes.  I tend to roll my eyes when people say things like, "You know things always happen in threes!" because I tend to think that things only happen in threes when people go looking for things to happen in threes.  I have nothing against the number three; it's one of my favorite numbers.  It's an odd number, and it looks like a backward capital E or a sideways M or W; what's not to love?!  I suppose the fact that I was born on the 3rd of the month that is 3 squared has something to do with that, too.  (Alas, I was born in an even year.  BUT, if you add up the numbers in the year I was born until you get a single digit, that single digit will be...wait for it...3! Whoa. I just figured that one out right now.)

And haven't you ever noticed that when giving examples of something, or asked to describe someone or something, people tend to list three things? 

...No? You don't notice this?  It's just me, and it usually sticks out to me due to incorrect or inconsistent comma usage?  Alright then.  Point taken.

Seriously!  Notice it sometime.  Just humor me.

😆😆😆

Alright.  My point being that the house hunt continues, and at times it's frustrating due to the inability to find what I have decided to call the Trifecta of Happiness.  This was before I knew that term was already used for other things, so I thought I was being creative and witty.  Damn internet, stealing the wind out of my sails.  But, I digress, and only have about ten minutes left of my lunch break, so without further ado, I present: The Trifecta of Happiness in House-Hunting:

• The House. Pretty obvious, right? Although I use the term "house-hunting" for lack of a better term -- another technicality call here, because we're not just looking for a house. But that's the rest of the list.  In our search, we are looking for a house that we don't want to tear down and rebuild.  One that is pretty much the way we want it.  Turn-key.  
• The Land.  At least 5 acres, preferably 10 or more, and some of it must be suitable for horses.  Guess we could add "The Location" in here as well, because we don't want to be in town (you'd think that goes without saying, but we found a place that was 10 acres in town...) and we also want to be within driving distance of our jobs and church and families.  And "The Outbuildings" because we'd like some of those, too.  An attached garage would be nice.  A detached garage would be nice, too.  ("As well as", not "instead of".  We have a lot of vehicles.)  We also need, at the very least, a lean-to for the horses and a hay barn.  As always, more is better, but a 12-stall horse barn might be too much.
• The Price.  The amount that the bank is willing to loan us and the amount we are willing to borrow from the bank are two very different numbers, the greater figure being in the bank's favor.  In other words, I'll take it back to one of my favorite sayings: "Just because you can, doesn't mean you should."  

So far, we are able to find 2 out of the 3 on a pretty consistent basis.  Which is encouraging, but also frustrating.  There are some great houses in great locations out there that are just a tad out of our price range...or acreage close-by that is affordable but with terrible houses on them...le sigh.  I just gotta keep having faith that we will find our next castle.  :)  It would be nice to take that last bulleted item out of the equation...