The hidden path

I am slowly in the process of uncovering the concrete walk that runs along the side of the house and actually leads to the garage door.  While a few spots were visible, it was so covered over with soil and plants that you could not be sure where the concrete ended and the yard began.  Below, a few shots of the unveiling:

IT'S MINE! ALLLLLL MINE!

Closed this morning!  This monster of a project is now mine to wrestle with until it once again becomes a happy home or I am institutionalized.

And to put my stamp on the house, I moved my rocking chairs and table to the house, declaring to the world that this house is owned by a rockin' dude! (ok, that was horrible.  Sorry.  Truly)

The Inside Story

So I mentioned that by some standards the house might be called a craphole.  But again, with love.  It is super cute and the right size for me and has a garage (or a big shed with electricity and a concrete floor).  And the price was right.

So what exactly makes me describe it in less-than-lauditory terms?  Well, the inside "needs work" as they say.  The Realtor who listed the house was quick to point out when I first called about seeing it that this

house needed work, and more than just paint and spackle.

The part that "needs work" is the room labelled Mudroom.  That room was an addition to the house and it has a flat roof.  Mating the flat roof to the original pitched roof created a seam which leaked.  And so that entire room has been gutted of drywall, walls and ceiling.

A keen eye will also notice that the kitchen and bathroom are smaller than some motor-homes.  But that can be changed, and in the meantime I am kinda looking forward to living the tiny-house lifestyle.

And so it begins

So I am buying a new house.  It is in Clintonville, a neighborhood in north Columbus about 2 miles north of the Ohio State University campus.  I used to own a house in Clintonhood, the north campus neighborhood just south of Clintonville proper, but this new house is in true Clintonville. So I am movin' on up, for sure.  Except for the condition of the house, that is.  It, uh, needs work.

I have been trying to come up with a good name for the house.  "The Craphole" seems pretty harsh, though I mean that with love.  It IS a bit of a mess.  But that doesn't bother me in the least, as it gives me a pretty clean slate to make it what I want.

So have you ever heard that cliche' that "you never want to own the most expensive house on the block"?  Well, there is no fear of that happening.  None at all.

Back to the name.  As you can see from the blog address, I think I'll go with "the Shack" or Clintonville Shack.  At 905 square feet, it certainly isn't a mansion or manor-house or estate.  Just a shack.  I might try and find out how to say "shack" or "hovel" in French and dress it up a bit.  But regardless, I truly could not be more excited about moving to The Shack!

I close on the house Oct. 30th.  I'll try to post some photos to make this more interesting.  Onward!