Wednesday, May 13, 2015

One Week In...

And half of the place is still in chaos. The problem is although the square footage is about the same, it is very different in terms of things like wall space, storage, individual room size. So much of the house is windows, we can't hang even half of the art (and I use that term loosely) we had in our old house. And it looks lousy if you put furniture in front of windows. We donated 11 pieces of furniture to Habitat for Humanity, 900 plus books to the AAUW but we are still drowning in our excess.

There is no room, for instance, in the bedroom for a bureau unless you want to trip over it at night. So I have to try and find some sort of IKEA thing to put in the closets. However, someone thoughtfully built shoe racks into the closet wall limiting us to very little depth to use. And whoever built this house must have been a giant because the shelves in the closets are six feet up. I have already strained by calves by reaching on my toes for the shelves.

The best thing about the house is the windows-especially after coming from a townhouse. But the worse thing is the lack of storage space. No basement or attic-

And here's another thing, we are 17 years older than the last time we moved and run out of steam a lot sooner. We are hoping to be settled in another week but the garden needs lots of work and we need a crackerjack handyman for inside. 

What is the best thing and worst about your home?





13 comments:

mybillcrider said...

Best: Bookshelves
Worst: Not enough bookshelves

Anonymous said...

These things evolve over time. Six months from now you'll rejoice over the opportunities that remained unseen at first. Enjoy the transition. I bought an old house eighteen years ago, and the furnishings are still evolving.

Deb said...

Best: lots of closet space, including a large walk-in which, over the course of 15 years, we've managed to fill floor-to-ceiling with "stuff".

Worst: not enough electrical outlets.

Mixed blessing: big back yard. On the positive side, it guarantees us lots of space and privacy; on the negative side, it requires a lot of upkeep and neither my husband nor I are much in the way of gardeners.

Jeff Meyerson said...

What Deb said. We struggled for 16 years with little if any closet space until we moved here. We have five decent to big closets plus the one huge walk-in closet.

Also on the good size - two very large bedrooms (12 x 20) as well as the same size living room/dining room plus a wide hall.

One more: an elevator building after 16 years in a third floor walkup. Plus, a laundry room.

Negatives? Not much from my point of view. There isn't much cross-ventilation as most of the windows face one direction. Also, we don't face the water (The Narrows) as we're in the back of the building.

Yes, we're fortunate. For us (and I recognize that people who want their own home wouldn't agree) this place has it all.

Jeff M.

Sergio (Tipping My Fedora) said...

Best? Having shelves built in the loft to deal with the massive overspill. Worst? Having to go up to the loft ...

Rick Robinson said...

We have 3,000 sq. ft. after living in 900 sq. ft. for years. Three bedrooms instead of two, which means a whole room devoted to books, plus a large wall in dining room of books. Plenty of wall space, though we still have many things not up, but we rotate them. Good sized garden areas, front and back, since we love to garden. Fabulous view but it does mean we have a steep hill to drive up and down, which can be a problem in snow/ice conditions. A large quilt studio for Barbara.

Jeff Meyerson said...

We also have a big eat-in kitchen.

I did think of the one drawback for Jackie - no second bathroom.

Jeff Meyerson said...

We also have a big eat-in kitchen.

I did think of the one drawback for Jackie - no second bathroom.

Cap'n Bob said...

Best: I own the entire upstairs.

Worst: Open floor plan with kitchen, dining room, and living room as one large expanse. Every time the refrigerator comes on I have to turn the TV up.

pattinase (abbott) said...

When our furnace comes on (or hot water heater) we have to turn the TV up!
We have lots of space and no steps and a great view but it is not perfect.
I had to have two bathrooms. Not so much for us alone but for guests. I am past the age when I want to share a bathroom with guests and we have them about 4-6 times a year.

Charles Gramlich said...

Always an adjustment to a new space. I hope your adjustment proceeds quickly.

George said...

We have a huge basement. But...it's full of books!

When we moved into a new house, we would concentrate on one room and get it fixed the way we wanted it. Then, we would move on to the next room.

Love the photos of your new Home!

pattinase (abbott) said...

Those are the rooms without issues!