Tuesday, October 28, 2014
This old house
As I was trying to quietly move from the kitchen to the basement to the kitchen to the front porch to the basement to the kitchen to the front porch, (something about memory and what I was after/and what I forgot to get!), I realized how futile my premise was. It simply is impossible to move quietly in this house. As I descended to the basement, the stairs each sang out the burden they were encountering. As I moved from the kitchen to the front porch, a cacophony of creaks, moans, and groans eminated from the floor boards. Even the chair announced my presence as I delicately lowered myself into it. Now this is the point. You may think I'm complaining. Not so. We have been in this house for over 38 years. With minor adjustments along the way, we have made it ours. It's comfortable. It has character. It's sturdy. And it's ours. Cath laughs at me when I frequently sit in the front porch and say "I like our house!" (Of course that's not the only time she laughs at me!). But I do! It is a blessing in my advanced years. And truthfully, it would seem that all the creaks are in the floor boards. This old house I've had for almost 65 years creaks and groans also! I think I'll keep them both! Love where you are, and know in turn you are loved!
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As I pack things into boxes for a move to what will be our 4th house here in Watertown, your post has me wondering. . . . I'm sure your intent wasn't to make those who do change houses feel guilty, though I suspect that some might wonder why people want to change addresses from time to time. We never moved to impress anyone or because we are restless people. Our moves almost always had to do with space.
ReplyDeleteHouse #1 had two bedrooms: That worked for a while with our family of four. House #2 had as much character as any house we've owned and had 3 bedrooms. We were attracted to house #3 (current) because it had an attached garage, enough bedrooms for children plus a guest and had a huge basement that Brian and Jon could call their own. Almost perfect!
So with Brian and Jon gone, why are we moving to a house that has 4 bedrooms and a few more square feet than what we currently have? The answer is still ”space" - space for entertaining, space for our home offices, space for a photo studio/workroom, heated space in the garage for a workshop. And it has outdoor space that is unlike any that we've ever had. I have always wanted to live on an acreage thinking that the silence and relative solitude of the country would appeal to my quiet, shy and moderately reclusive self. But I also realize that life in the country would be less convenient in many ways.
But the house we are moving to is in a part of town that won't likely ever be noisy. And our back yard opens to a large swale with natural wildlife and natural grasses. The privacy and the views were hard to resist.
So I guess that's why we're moving. And, yes, you have a great house with charm that matches yours and CZ's. And for what it's worth, I've never heard either you or your house creak and groan. :-)
Thanks for writing a blog post that made me step back and think. Many of you posts do this. Some make me laugh. Some make me hungry. Some do all three. (And of course you are loved, too.)