An Samhradh 2004 (Mí na Bealtaine)

So, back to the first floor. Wonderful box beams run the length of the living and dining room. A great hanging light with its milk glass still intact is one of a number of original light fixtures that survived the period when the home was a two-unit rental.

An t-Earrach 2004 (Mí Aibreán)

Although it might not appear so, the laundry room is really pretty cool. The original galvenized triple sinks are in good repair (although the drains need some attention). The base structure is concrete. All the doors and windows throughout the basement are finished with fir woodwork. Lots of clearance space overhead, with easy access for plumbing and wiring.

An t-Earrach 2004 (Mí na Marta)

These interior views shows the sunporch from the kitchen doorway. The plaster walls were in great shape, and the dark-stained fir woodwork needs only some cleanup and a coat of varnish. The right side of the door casing is obscuring the wood rail of the basement stairs. One oddity, an ugly notch had been cut in the window sill nearest the back door. During the sunporch restoration phase (right now low on the priority list), perhaps a discrete repair can be made.

An t-Earrach 2004 (Mí Feabhra)

The house journal continues after an extended interruption. Anyway, to continue on with the exterior tour of the new old house this picture shows the back door entrance to the porch/sunroom. The sunporch is smallish, opens into the kitchen, and serves as the access to the full basement. Windows immediately right of the door are one of the three sets of double narrow windows; windows to the right of those are the dining room windows.

An Geimhreadh 2003-2004 (Mí Eanáir)

This view shows the barn/garage structure located on the ally. Much older than the house, this structure was once home to an ice distribution business. The walls are insulated with sawdust. The southeast corner of the structure is an interesting little office room, and rumor has it that the housebuilder/owner lived in the office while the house was under construction. That's not out of the question because the office has its own toilet and sink. Office door and window are visible in the photo.

An Geimhreadh 2003-2004 (Mí na Nollag)

South-facing view of the property shows the half-timber detail on the upper eaves and second floor. The sunroom/porch contains a stairway access to the basement level; the porch entry stairs lead to the door of the attached garage. Side yard of the property was home to 6 cottonwood trees that were well past the pull-by date. At the time this photo was taken, all six had been removed. Many cottonwood trees in the community had been rotting and falling. The 10 on this property caused some severe sidewalk and pavement problems. The cottonwoods on the boulevard (shown in the first post) were also scheduled for removal. Taking advantage of a local community tree program, all the trees have been replaced with more appropriate species.

An Geimhreadh 2003-2004 (Mí na Samhna)

This east-facing view of our 1919ish cement block craftsman style house was taken weeks after we closed on the sale. The blocks used for construction were fabricated on-site by the builder/owner at a rate of 8-10 blocks per day. The property changed hands only twice, once in the 1980s after the builder's widow died and with our purchase in 2003. It was designed as a two-family residence, two-bedroom unit on the main floor and one-bedroom unit on the second. We converted it to a single-family residence by simply taking down the stairway door off the small front foyer. The single car attached garage is a bit unusual for a traditional craftsman, with detached garages being the norm. This garage has fully finished window/door woodwork as well as finished and painted plaster on the interior. Garage space also has a grease pit, a heater vent off the central heat, a coal chute, and access to storage under the front porch.