t was to be a special valentine to each other but it turned out to be a bust for Dick and Mary "Doats" Meeuwsen when they arrived to move into their Florida beach paradise.
The couple who had longed to move to a warmer climate for some time finally had an opportunity to do so this last week when they found a furnished beach home in Sebastian Florida. They thought the deal was made and were looking forward to moving into their furnished abode upon arrival. But things went awry as soon as they got there. They met with the person handling the real estate deal and found that he had been removing furniture and items from the dwelling that were supposed to be included with the deal. Even worse, the removal of the items uncovered defects in the property that the couple was unaware of. Apparently the so called "Florida Room" had had a hole in the roof and ceiling and leaked so badly that it had caused a hole to form in the floor, it all was covered with rugs and never mentioned during sale talks. Unhappy about what the couple saw when they arrived they demanded things be made right, but their demands fell on deaf ears and soon gave notice they wanted out of the deal. The lawyer in charge of the sale advised them they would be refunded their down payment.
At that point the couple and their two dogs were homeless and spent a couple of nights sleeping in their cars, one night they slept in one car and the dogs in the other but after further consideration they each picked a dog of their choice and slept in their own cars the next night. Later they slept in a hotel.
Tired and disgusted the pair made their way up the Florida coast and soon found themselves on Satellite Beach about 5 miles south of Cocoa Beach on the island. It didn't take long and they had found a house to rent, a tough job says Doats considering the dogs in tow. Doats says that they will not purchase a home in Florida for at least a year now and will try renting and see if they like it where they are.
Still trying to find employment Doats has gotten her nursing license in Florida but only after considerable expense and much hassle with paperwork. It is unknown about the man of mystery Dick Meeuwsen and his situation with employment.
