The new house is for rent once again, renter lured away by the big city. He got laid off from his job as a counselor at the local detox center. He'd only worked there a year, and it's his first job after getting his degree in whatever is needed. He was a good renter, and I'll miss him. I know his extended family so that made a big difference. The ironic thing is that I didn't find him through them - he posted on Facebook not using his last name, so I didn't realize who he was until we were far along in the process.

This time, I've advertised the rental on Zillow (92 Brown Trout Lane, Drake CO 80515) and am using their application to help with the steps of it. Prospective renters apply online and pay the $29 background check fee online, so I don't have to deal with getting money from them.

Some may think this is a negative, but it works for me: not very many of our locals who are desperately looking for a rental have thought to watch for rentals on Zillow, so I'm not getting a ton of applications. It's really stressful for me to deal with scheduling showings and meeting all kinds of people, and then telling most of them 'sorry.' It says 'No Pets' but 100% of the applicants have at least one dog. It's not that we hate dogs, we just want the right dog and the right owner. No barking, no poop all over the property.

Tomorrow, the 'cleanest/hardest working guy you'll ever meet' and his 'best behaved dog in the world, better than most people' are coming to look at the house. He is the sort of person I'm looking for - outdoorsy and can no doubt handle getting up our steep driveway in winter, has a job as an oilfield operator, seems to be no-nonsence. I just have to make sure I like him and he's not insufferably sold on himself.

If he is, then the cute family of four with a 'superior' credit rating will move to the top of the list. I've had several email discussions with them about how small this house of mine is, and can they afford it, and so on.

They're still the second choice, and I've found someone with a house in town that is coming available that would be better for them. We are all on pins and needles waiting for that landlord to come back from Las Vegas and agree to consider them. It's a friend of a friend sort of deal, and I don't think the availability has been made public. There is such a shortage of affordable housing for the younger people who work in Estes Park, any mention of a possible rental coming available is like throwing a steak in a shark tank.