The ShugaBowl: Little House on the . . . well, this isn't exactly a prairie.

Wednesday, September 14, 2005

Little House on the . . . well, this isn't exactly a prairie.

Now that I actually have time to do it, I am going to describe to you my little house.

It is a sweet, little beige rancher with a bay window in the front. The driveway to the garage is on the right of the relatively small front yard and is accented by a whimsical little lamppost on the left, from which hangs a pot of white, orange and pink impatiens. The yard is bordered by a two-rail fence in front and on the left, while two tall juniper trees border the right side of the drive. As you tread the path from the driveway to the door, there are hedges to the right up against the house. In between each waist-high bush is a small cluster of impatiens planted in the ground. Alicia keeps these tended and watered when it doesn't rain.

Our front door is brown and without windows. It sticks a little so that you have to shove hard to get it to open. When you have overcome that obstacle, you find yourself in a small foyer. In front of you stands a small low table, on which sits the daily mail, including the newest grocery ads and all the mailings from each church for which you filled out a visitor's card. Above the table is a large, square mirror with a gold-colored frame. A coat closet to the left, which houses everything but coats, including baseball mitts and such similar sports equipment attracts little attention, if any.

First, I will take you to the right. This is the most frequented room in the house, the kitchen. Decorated in cream and brick red, this is a sweet little place to sit and chat with all the girls who live here, and then some, or a cozy place to sit at night with a cup of hot cocoa, coffee or tea. The bay window is curtained with plaid tab top drapes and the sill holds a variety of potted plants. (This is where George lives.) In front of the window is the round table where I have breakfast each morning. A unique way to hold photos is exampled by two jars of black and white beans that sit on the table as centerpieces. The photos are slid between the prongs of two plastic forks, which are thence pushed into their respective bean jars. This is a great way to use up yucky beans, Mom! Along the top of the cupboards is a string of ivy intertwined with white Christmas lights. This would have a great effect at night except that the lights currently do not work.

Our kitchen is complete with all the gadgets a girl could possibly need from a refrigerator and a microwave to a Bosch and a juicer. I believe our house to be the only one with a complete set of matching flatware. The stove is presently pulled away from the wall to make it easy for the maintenance guys to reach the fan above the stove, which is in need of repair. (I have discovered many little things around the house in such condition. The faucet doesn’t give hot water in the kitchen. The front left burner doesn't work on the stove.) We have three ovens, one under the stovetop, and two stacked over each other on the opposite side of the kitchen. An ironing board stands in the corner on the way back to the foyer and the telephone hangs on the wall within easy reach of the table. Across from the telephone is the pantry, where is kept all manner of dry goods from tea bags and sugar to cereal and popcorn.

Coming through the foyer and passing by the front door, we turn left into the living room. Beside you is a cozy fireplace with clear glass bottles arranged on the mantle. The couch to your left is decked with pillows of green which accent the creamy tan color of the couch itself. A large window looks out over the back lawn, draped with sheer curtains. The two comfy chairs in front of the window each have their own benefits, the one being near to the stereo in the corner by the couch and the other being close to the piano in the opposite corner. The piano is a dark gleaming object with a beautifully tuned sound which it emits whenever one of the five residents is inclined to use the instrument. To the left of the piano is the door to Anna's bedroom, which can then lead you to the backyard by an outside entrance. Between the door and the fireplace sits the last piece of furniture, being another of those comfy chairs. The attraction of this chair lies in its close proximity to the bookshelf beside it.

Now as you will remember, I left you standing in the doorway of the living room next to the fireplace. Turn yourself to the right again and walk forward a few steps. There is a white door on your right and a brown door on your left. Behind the white door are the many necessities of life, vacuums, brooms, mops, etc. Behind the brown door is my bedroom. Shove a little, you'll get it open eventually. You have to run your hand along the wall for a little way before you hit the light switch and when you find it, you'll see a little 15 watt bulb overhead in a chandelier. It's the only one in the chandelier that works. The maintenance guys haven't made it to my house yet. As you stand in the doorway, there is a small desk to your right. It holds a black hat, two purses and a set of hot curlers. On the wall over the desk is a large framed picture of a river and lots of flowers. It's pretty, but not something I'd choose for a bedroom. Glancing counter-clockwise along the right wall, (you're still in the entryway) you'll see a set of shelves, which holds all manner of photo frames, books, boxes and such, a set of three drawers, where are kept sweaters, jackets and sewing projects, a closet, and a dresser. Nothing being significantly noteworthy about either the closet or the dresser, I move on around to the table and bed, which are now in front of you. The table holds the lamp that I use most often, partly because it gives off the most light, and partly because it is connected to a switch on the opposite side of the bed. (It's easier to reach than getting up out of bed to turn the light on or off.) My little brown bear is there on my bed to welcome me home every night and keep my from being lonely when I need a hug.

There are three more bedrooms and two bathrooms further down the hall, but as I have not seen them all, the really cannot be described on a blog. There are two pendulum clocks at either end of the hall, neither of which work. The garage is accessible through the last door on the left. Two white cars, belonging to Alicia and Deb, sit here on any given day. To get to the laundry room, you must cross the garage, squeeze around Deb's car and open the door on that side. A small high window fills the room with light during the day.

Our backyard is small, but open to the other yards on our street. A large locust tree shades a worn path to the creek. Many have been the girls who walk this path, be they from our house or the one across the street. Down at the creek, which is filling up beautifully since the rain, is a small footbridge. The poles on either end with holes drilled in them cannot help but hint at a rope rail being formerly in use.

Now you have seen the whole of my home away from home. It is the best picture I can paint without the aid of a digital camera. Perhaps when next I come to HQ, that may be remedied.

posted by cori 9/14/2005 06:12:00 PM

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