Love it. Fences, New England neighbors (traced back to witch trials-- that's IT), throne king (such a proud name!), Sarah Winchester, appeasing the gods. All in one great essay. Oh, and beautiful city pic. You're alright, kid.
HAAA!!! Grazie Mighty One. :) If they ever do move in and invite us over to their backyard BBQ I am going to stick my nose into every nook and cranny of that house. I can't even imagine what they are doing to it in there....:)
My suburb has a similar vibe (without the mass transit access--which is a rant for another day). Lots of people settled here, raised families, and only left once the clock ran out on independent living. Our first house had one owner the previous 30(ish) years. The guy that sold us our current one had grown up in it. My neighbor just moved after clocking an impressive 50+ years in the same spot. He'd moved here in the mid 60's 'cause he wanted to walk to work and hated to drive. He sold insurance. Go figure.
The people that bought it are following a similar, lower key pattern as your new neighbors. The siding's still on this one, but there has been a nonstop parade of trades people in/pout of the place since early November. The new people kitty-corner to us sheared off the front of their house and put in a lovely stone staircase instead. Hard to be mad about it, though. it does look pretty cool. And they left us treats for Christmas.
To your point, there is a larger (literally), uglier (also literally) trend taking shape here. Most of these houses are smaller, bungalow style homes, or ranches. Garages are a hot commodity. A lot of people are tearing down the houses and replacing them with gigantic, ostentatious structures that look completely out of place. It's wild. I'm not sure why anyone would want to do that, but here we are. I get wanting to make a place your own, but this ain't it. So much for reading the room.
P.S. Why anyone would invest so much in a open deck in New England or the Midwest is beyond me. They're basically unusable for 7-8 months/year.
You're spot on about all of it, Kevin. I grew up in a similar "families been here for decades" kind of neighborhood and I appreciate that quality to these spaces. It usually means people are invested in one another as much as in their properties. Elsewhere in town I've seen exactly what you describe. One near a walking trail I frequent. It was a modest ranch and developers turned it into two-story, two-family type unit that is devoid of any personality. I understand upgrades that are needed and, as you say, things that give the home a new identity, but some of it feels more like, to paraphrase Joni Mitchell, "the crazy that comes with too much choice." And AGREED on the deck, massive patio, ditto swimming pool around these parts. In that case, I NEED to see you grilling in February at -5 without the wind chill :)
Love it. Fences, New England neighbors (traced back to witch trials-- that's IT), throne king (such a proud name!), Sarah Winchester, appeasing the gods. All in one great essay. Oh, and beautiful city pic. You're alright, kid.
HAAA!!! Grazie Mighty One. :) If they ever do move in and invite us over to their backyard BBQ I am going to stick my nose into every nook and cranny of that house. I can't even imagine what they are doing to it in there....:)
My suburb has a similar vibe (without the mass transit access--which is a rant for another day). Lots of people settled here, raised families, and only left once the clock ran out on independent living. Our first house had one owner the previous 30(ish) years. The guy that sold us our current one had grown up in it. My neighbor just moved after clocking an impressive 50+ years in the same spot. He'd moved here in the mid 60's 'cause he wanted to walk to work and hated to drive. He sold insurance. Go figure.
The people that bought it are following a similar, lower key pattern as your new neighbors. The siding's still on this one, but there has been a nonstop parade of trades people in/pout of the place since early November. The new people kitty-corner to us sheared off the front of their house and put in a lovely stone staircase instead. Hard to be mad about it, though. it does look pretty cool. And they left us treats for Christmas.
To your point, there is a larger (literally), uglier (also literally) trend taking shape here. Most of these houses are smaller, bungalow style homes, or ranches. Garages are a hot commodity. A lot of people are tearing down the houses and replacing them with gigantic, ostentatious structures that look completely out of place. It's wild. I'm not sure why anyone would want to do that, but here we are. I get wanting to make a place your own, but this ain't it. So much for reading the room.
P.S. Why anyone would invest so much in a open deck in New England or the Midwest is beyond me. They're basically unusable for 7-8 months/year.
You're spot on about all of it, Kevin. I grew up in a similar "families been here for decades" kind of neighborhood and I appreciate that quality to these spaces. It usually means people are invested in one another as much as in their properties. Elsewhere in town I've seen exactly what you describe. One near a walking trail I frequent. It was a modest ranch and developers turned it into two-story, two-family type unit that is devoid of any personality. I understand upgrades that are needed and, as you say, things that give the home a new identity, but some of it feels more like, to paraphrase Joni Mitchell, "the crazy that comes with too much choice." And AGREED on the deck, massive patio, ditto swimming pool around these parts. In that case, I NEED to see you grilling in February at -5 without the wind chill :)