Crazy

Yesterday we got this wild idea to go house hunting for a fixer-upper in a little artsy fartsy college area two block strip in the city we live in. It's a bit away from all the new construction, closer to the old downtown of the city that's far less loved but with much more character.

We found a house for sale in a great location. In the exact location we wanted. And the house is indeed a fixer-upper! The front porch is falling apart - collapsing in two different directions really! It would definately need to be torn off and rebuilt.

Who knows what the inside of the house looks like! Although I'm hoping to find out today or sometime soon.

We kept cracking up with laughter as we drove around the block of this home. Partly laughing because it was just such an odd little area and partly because it was freaky enough to be outside our comfort range.

It would be a fun project house to fix up and then rent out later. But first I have to see if this house is livable inside... the house's sale ad mentioned that some remodeling/reconstruction has already been started on the inside of the house... and if the outside of the house is ANY indication of what the inside looks like, we'll we'd definately have our work cut out for us. But the inside has to show promise and potential... I definately don't want us to bite off more than we can chew - no matter how handy my husband is... and he is quite talented with this sort of stuff.

I offered up the idea of driving around the house and up the next street to try to get a glimpse of the back of the house to see if it's in as bad of shape as the front of the house. A few yards around the corner we notice a back alley leading toward the back of the houses on the street.

"Turn! Let's go investigate!" I yammer.

With a quick turn of the wheel, we're bouncing down this dirt alley way in our SUV. There's all sorts of graffiti sprayed on the garage doors. And most of those garages are barely standing as it is. One tenant in another home must have been evicted because there was a massive pile of someone's belongings out by the garbage.

We were amazed at all the ~interesting-ness~ this area has to offer. It's like a wild and crazy story and adventure at every turn.

Further down the alley we found a rooster! He was just walking around bobbing his head and on either side of him was a yard filled with a mysterious and somewhat scary looking dog. They seemed to be barking in camaraderie at us, seeing a how we were definately intruders in their turf.

"I don't know if I should laugh with exciting anticipation for adventure, or if I should cry with nervousness..." I say.

And with that my husband stopped the car and smiled at me.

"You know what's under the car right now?" he asks.

I look at him quizzically.

"A dead rat!" (He was already dead, have it be known we did not run it over... rat or no rat, I'm not keen on running animals over. Annnoying people, sure. Animals, no.)

We looped out of the alley way and headed back around to the front of the house. We took one last look and decided we'd try to see the inside of it today if it works out.

As we left, I noticed across the street is some sort of old (and by old I mean ancient) computer collection building. Outside lined up along the cyclone fence must have been 20 computer monitors. And a couple yards from the monitors, were various other piles of old computer parts. All out in the open getting rained on.

And because all of it mixed together was so darn strange and bizarre - the collapsing porch - the rooster - the dogs - the dead rat - the evicted belongings - the graffiti - the unwanted computer parts, I sat there and laughed. And then soon found relief when I noticed a Starbucks would still be within walking distance to my front door.

UPDATE: We have an appointment to see the inside at 3pm PST.