House tour

[mamagotcha]

Hey, I figured if I waited until the house was actually cleaned up and ready to be photographed, I'd never get it done. So you're getting a glimpse of our space as it is right now... messy and a bit cluttery, but it's working for us right now. Come on in!

ETA: If you click through to the Flickr page, there's a way to turn on the comments so you can see what I wrote about each photo.

Comments

[kightp.livejournal.com]

Nice! Although I think your bathrooms are missing their fair share of the books. (-:

[mamagotcha.livejournal.com]

Upstairs, the kiddo likes to splash and the hubby likes to steam in the shower... not so friendly. You gotta plan ahead and take in your own reading material. (Look on the coffee table! Lots of magazines there!)

Downstairs has a little table to the right of the stool, out of sight... that would be a good place for a few Smithsonians and a Calvin-and-Hobbes book. I'll get right on it!

[feckalyn.livejournal.com]

Nice place!

Whatever happened with your police officer neighbor?

[mamagotcha.livejournal.com]

Thanks! Turns out he's not a cop, never has been... it's the neighbor on the other side of us, I guess Bill misheard the gal who told him about it. He's pretty much left me alone, talks to Linc when he's playing in the backyard, that's about it. Works for me.

[paulaandandrew.livejournal.com]

Looks good; like that your wooden furniture looks so good with the oak floors. Also: never let Ian see that you allowed a drum set in your house! It's his fervent wish that we'd let him have one upstairs. I think our tenant would want to move!

Also: how does Bill like his job? How's my Alma Mater? his commute?

[mamagotcha.livejournal.com]

Thanks! Yeah, most of the nicer bookshelves and our bedroom set are all the lighter oak stuff... that's why I decided to keep those and mostly jettison the larger darker shelves (still kept a few, though... we got rid of a LOT of books, but still had enough to justify a couple. And there's another one in Clay's room, too).

Our basement is underground with thick stone/brick walls and 3" thick glass block windows. You don't hear the drums much outside at all. Indoors, it's another story... but there are apartment drum sets that are supposed to be pretty nice.

Bill's loving his job so far; he's almost done with his first term, and will be teaching a couple graduate courses starting in January. He gets a big freshman class next fall. His lab is pretty much all set up, he already had a student request that he be one of his advisers, and he's getting deliveries of his fly stocks.

DePaul seems to be doing well through the recession so far, although most departments aren't hiring at all (biology is actually looking to hire one more teacher, though, because their teacher/student ratio is one of the highest in the school and they want to bring it into line with the other departments).

The commute has been okay so far... he bikes one mile to the Metra (commuter train), rides for about 15 minutes, and walks the last mile. He says it's about 45 minutes door-to-door, which is shorter than we thought it would be when we decided to rent here. He's mostly liking the exercise, but we'd like to get him a folding bike eventually so he can carry it on the train and bike on both ends of the commute. I figure I'll drive him to the station and he'll taxi the last mile on really awful days.

I'm having fun exploring... we found a good local game store, joined the closest Y (where guys can rent rooms!), took a class at the Old Town School of Music, found a local vet, visited a local dentist and optometrist, and headed to a doctor on Thursday, scoping out the libraries and such, signed up for Peapod, found a mechanic to work on the car, meeting homeschool folks, etc. etc. The drivers here are FAR better and more courteous than in KC, but the parking situation is abysmal. I'm working on using the El when I can, but for some stuff, like bringing the dog or hauling cases of food, I need the van. I still haven't found an accessible Nia class, which is kind of discouraging, but everything else has been easy to find (fabric store, drug store, knitting store, Target, etc. etc.).

[essaying.livejournal.com]

When Ben was taking Percussion at City, he had a drum pad that was extremely quiet -- our loft had no soundproofing at all, but he could play it in his room without disturbing me (much).

[essaying.livejournal.com]

That looks really homey and cozy. Nice!

[mamagotcha.livejournal.com]

Thanks! You have a very nice way of saying "cluttery and chaotic." ;)

[essaying.livejournal.com]

Well, obviously that must be what looks homey and cozy to me -- you should see this place ;)

[jedusor.livejournal.com]

No matter how many times you guys move, I'll never get used to seeing all our stuff in a new place.

I wonder how many of those books and board games are technically mine. (And how many of the books you sold were technically mine. :P) Oh, that reminds me! I found someone here who plays Go, and I asked Jeffrey if he had a spare board he could send me, and he told me you or Bill might still have one of his old ones. Any chance it's still kicking around?

[mamagotcha.livejournal.com]

You're welcome to come collect your books and games any time, dear one! I did try to send out the ones you'd specifically set aside and stored as yours... if you want me to send out anything else, I promise to send it first class this time!

I think we do have a go board somewhere... you want?

[jedusor.livejournal.com]

Oh no, I didn't leave anything I couldn't live without. Just idly wondering.

Re: the go board: if you would be so kind! Every time I watch Hikaru no Go, I get all excited about developing some skills, but practically nobody in this country even knows what it is. It's not so much fun online--you lose the casual social aspect of it and the satisfying little plinks of the stones hitting the board. But a few weeks ago, I was hanging out with a Clark friend of mine chatting about poetry or something and he randomly asked me if I played. He doesn't have a board either, though, because he's never been able to find anyone to play with.

[lunacow]

Fabulous house! Thanks for showing us around.

[mamagotcha.livejournal.com]

Thanks for taking the tour! I think I owe you and your housemates about a year of hospitality, so please do come collect some or all of it at any time!

[lunacow]

Your basement looks like nice guest quarters (it even has Rock Band!), so I look forward to taking it over sometime.

[lcohen]

looks nice! but if that's what you think messy looks like, i am never showing you mine!

[mamagotcha.livejournal.com]

I lived through all my kids' early years in a house that was pretty much knee-deep in STUFF. I know how easy it is for belongings to accumulate; the only reason you can see my floor is that I've had to move five times in the last six years. So this now is a little cluttery... (especially around my sewing area)... but I totally identify with and am constantly battling the tide of clutter. And I will not ever think poorly of someone who has feathered their nest with books, music, and things that bring them joy. I only really start feeling uncomfortable when there's stuff like rotting food or scary dishes piled up...

[canyon-lady.livejournal.com]

Your house looks happy and comfortable - my kind of place! Love the kitchen - and the game/music space! (What other instruments are played in the household besides drums? Are you the keyboard player?)

[tara-doula.livejournal.com]

It looks great! I loved seeing all the little touches that make it "you." I hope you guys have some wonderful years there, and that I can visit soon!