So, after the yahooPhotos! debacle, I'm trying Flickr instead. They've got an upload tool, the netnanny doesn't block (photobucket must have some NAUGHTY piccies) and the url LOOKS static rather than dynamic. I never figured out how to use the photobucket thingy anyhow.
Sooooooooooooooooooooo.............................................
Let's do the damn ting, ya??
So - this is the road to our house - I just wanted to show ya'll how RURAL this road looks. Thank heavens Memphis doesn't get that much snow.
Now - turning into our driveway which is on the left of the road. The house is set about 150 ft back from the road - so you can see the lovely open area in the front that is surrounded by trees. I'm thinking about seeding that area with tall flowers - wildflowers and sunflowers and the like. The driveway is gravel - C keeps mentioning blacktopping it, but I like the gravel - it's more natural and flows better. The blacktop would be a big black divider in the middle of the yard. Eech.
This is another picture - straight across the open area. You can see our neighbors (they are getting a new roof, I think) down through the back. I think our land stops right at that lightpole. That's a Tulip tree in the middle of the yard - apparently, they are supposed to be REALLY pretty when they bloom.
Here's a good shot of the front of the house - that front door that is hidden behind the tree there will most likely almost NEVER be used. There's a nice little foyer in there though - we'll have to make some use of that. I'd like to start pointing out the pink accents that are scattered throughout the house now - The roses in front of the house? Pink. The steps? Pink. The shutters? Pink.
And here's the south side of the house - that door there is the one that we use the most often, being right next to the carport and all. Those steps back there go to the deck, which is almost the same height as the carport roof, so you can't see it very well. That's the deck C wants to tear down, and while I LOVE how high up it is - and very private - perfect for suntanning! - I want to make that area right there a garden, extending away from the house. The garage is behind that, and behind the garage is a pole barn.
And this is the north side of the house. Our land goes about to the line of bushes to the right, I think. The baywindow & airconditioner that you can see on this side of the house is in the bonus room upstairs - we'll see that from the inside later.
This is behind that first row of bushes coming out from the house - that's a FIG tree right there in the middle!! I love the way that they made various little 'private' nooks and crannies with the bushes. It's very cool. You can see the garage windows in the back, and the pokeyoutty bit from the house is the family room and game room.
This is a good view of the 'polebarn' as I like to call it. I think if it gets cleaned up and leveled a bit, it'll be a nice outdoor workshop. Kindly ignore the loads of junk and so forth that are scattered about - they are remains from the previous folx, and well.... I wonder how much it costs to rent a dumpster?
Giovanni was chasing after me (and himself, and everything else) while I was outside taking pictures. Is there ANYTHING cuter than a full grown, enourmously fat cat, kittenrunning through the grass?? Nope, didn't think so. I missed that picture (dang it!) but got a fuzzy closeup of the furball - who LOVES the house.
Okay! Here's a full view of the back of the house - I'm standing about in the middle of our back'yard' - once again, ignore the lumps of wood and the like. Sheesh, I would be bitter if the man wasn't an Elder.
The back of the yard - I think I'm standing right to the side of the polebarn.
And this is the open area on the south side of the house. I'm seeing fruit trees and other wonderful growing things over here. The garden is going to come out right in front of that line of bushes. You can see the edge of the railing to the deck in this picture. The dead tree leaning on the polebarn is apparently black walnut - we are SOOOO selling that!
Finally, back around to the front of the house - see where the deck is? That's going to be where the main garden goes - I THINK there is dirt between the slab of the carport and the slab of the garage. Our friend the grill (which, if I recall aright, was used before the oven!) and the main door of the house.
That enourmous plant there (concealing my open car door) is something called 'poke salad', and I hear it makes good eating - BUT! - I've also been told to only pick the baby leaves, and to dump the water three times before eating because it's toxic. Um, no, I think I'll stick with the dandelions.
Standing in the same spot, this is a shot to the front of the house showing the neighbors across the street. What's the rule for moving into a new neighborhood - is it cool for me to just swing by and say hi and meet the folks, or should I wait for them to approach me?
G finally got tired of chasing me around the yard, and settled down into his favorite chill spot under the steps to the deck. Dammit, I KNOW he's going to lay in the garden, the little bugger.
Okay - so now that we've been all around the inside, please do, come in!! I took these pictures Saturday, I think - so forgive the boxes. ;)
Standing inside that door, this is the family room. 14 points to anyone who can tell what I was watching on TV. By the by, these pictures were taken the same DAY as the outside pictures, but a shower and a wee snack came between. Looking through the door to the back, that room is the game room. The door with the towel on it is the door to the downstairs bathroom.
Turning to the right, you'll see a big ole door, and looking through the door, there's the kitchen. On the other side of the kitchen is the formal living room....we'll go there later. Those double closet doors conceal the laundry room (with the leaky washing machine facuets that I PRAY my hubby fixed BEFORE he washed clothes). And hey! There is our newly installed Brinks panel on the wall too - I've already set it off twice opening the main door and forgetting to deactivate the alarm.
Okay, now we are going to walk into the kitchen, and look to the right. Here we see the lovely bay window and built in corner shelves that were painted a hideous green. Ya know, I'd actually prefer the pink.
Looking to the left from here, you see the rest of the kitchen. The stove and the gap for the fridge is offscreen to the right, and you can see 1/3 of our temporary fridge (the white styrafoam cooler) on the floor. The door with the towel rack on it that you can see through the door of the kitchen is the OTHER bathroom door. Same bathroom, two doors.
Walking through the door opposite the one we walked into the kitchen through, we are in the formal living room (or, the room with the fireplace). Please ignore the PINK drapes. You can also see the corner of the fireplace surround on the lower right hand corner of the picture - ALSO pink. That door there is the never used front door. The window is this pretty cracked glass mosaic.
If we make a left in this room, we end up in the 'formal' dining room. It's really just the dining room, because there is no other dining room - though we will most likely do most of our eating at the kitchen table (no, don't go back and look, there's no table in the kitchen YET). This picture is to try to show off more of the pink fireplace, and the rockin ass mirror over the fireplace. Isn't the pink border around the room just LOVELY? And despite the wallpaper in the living room LOOKING pink - it's (shockingly enough) actually not - it's a funny shade of brown. Probably pinkish brown.
This is another picture of the dining room - I wanted ya'll to see the matching chandelier and wall scones. Purty, ain't they?? The previous owners were also very short, as almost every light in the house demands that you either be under 5'5, or that you walk around it. The open door to you left goes into a little - vestibule type area - and the corner of brown to the lower right is the bottom step to go upstairs.
See - steps!! We aren't going upstairs just yet though. (More Pink)
Hook a left, and go through the open door in the dining room, and we are in the vestibule area. (More Pink) Directly ahead is the bathroom, to the right is the library, and to the left is the kitchen. The little cupboard on the right is going to be the linen closet.
Making a right, we are in the library. And yes, every single ONE of those boxes holds books. Well, okay - there are a couple of boxes of magazines in there too - but mostly books. And yes, the wallpaper in there has pink flowers.
If you step into the library and make another right, you are in the exercise/spare/ironing board room. I was considering using the space under the stairs as a storm shelter, but the only one who could fit in there comfortably is G.
Okay, walking out of this room and the library, we are back in the vestibule looking into the kitchen. You can see the other 2/3 of our temporary fridges in the form of blue coolers, and a 3/4 empty bottle of tequilla. UUUmmmmm..... Tequiilllllaaaaaa....... *sighs at the pink*
Okay! Making a right from the vestibule, we are in the bathroom. It's an odd little room, but it's bigger than it looks. Shower to the right, sink to the left. The sink has a cool three sided mirror thingy on it that rocks socks. Through the open door in the back, you can see the window to the game room.
Now, if we walk into the game room, we can see the bootleg computer set up in the corner (cuz I'm addicted, yo!)
Off to the right, there is this funny closet typethingy - known as either the file closet because of the huge old school 543 pound file cabinet in it, or G's closet, due to the presence of food and litter box. There's actually a skylight in there, as the back section doesn't have electric, I don't think.
Okay - back into the game room, we look out of the door (the one that doesn't lead to a bathroom or a closet) and voila! We are back in the family room!
Okay, now it's time to go upstairs. I cut through the bathroom, cut through the vestibule, cut through the dining room, and head upstairs. There are two cool windows in the stairwell - one to the side, and one at the top of the steps.
Now, we are in the bonus room. I'd like to note that all of the clothes belong to the male half of the inhabitants of the house - and not the male with fur, either.
If you look to your right, you'll see the bay window and A/C unit we saw from outside. That unit is our only source of cool area, but luckily, it has BEEN pretty cool for the last few days. I've actually considered turning the heat on. Brrr.
Now, the bedroom. That closet door in the back contains yet another closet, and that closet holds the water heater. And hey - another cool ass window! The 'master bathroom' door is tucked in the corner closest to the front of the picture on the same side as the closet.
This bathroom will be our first major rip out walls, taking names and debt on renovation. It's supposed to be the master bathroom, and dammit, I want a roman tub!! We'll have to sacrifce some of the closet in the bonus room, but hey - it's worth it. The current tub is an old school claw foot tub - currently occupied by our waterbed mattress - *sighs* - because hubby thought that our discussion about getting a new frame meant that we should LEAVE our old frame. Yeah. Men.
There's a cool window in here to, as well as more pink love. Can I share a horror with ya'll - the ceiling? of this bathroom? Covered in the SAME wallpaper. The CEILING ya'll!! Can I get a break?
So - thus concludes the house pictures. I'd now like to show ya'll some pictures that demonstrate the amazing transformation that is part and parcel of becoming a homeowner and moving within the same week. Now - to let ya'll know - when I'm stressed, I pick apart my locs. And every May - without fail - I do something radical to my hair.
So.
Before moving - looking like who did what, and Why, dear gods, WHY????!!??
After the move - looking like gravy that belongs on a biscuit (okay, I'm picking up WAAAYYY too many southernisms)
Rowr!
a) No, I actually didn't cut any off - as I picked apart my locs, I realized that MOST of the length was old shed, dead hair - which I suspect is why my locs lost all their luster.
b) It's red. RED. I was blond for a second, as that is the only way I can ever really get RED hair - but year, it's - RED. I need to shampoo it this weekend and see if it needs an extra batch of dye. My hair is strong, stuborrn, and very chemical resistant.
Just for Egocentric -
I invite all ya'll back downstairs, where we can stand around the boxes and the debris, and pass around two pitchers - one with sweet Tea, and one with Long Island Iced Tea - *grins* Take ya pick!!!
And, I'm done!
