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Tuesday, August 24, 2010

The Living Room...


This was my first impression of my living room when I opened the door...The county had taken the sheets off of the one window to let light in so they could take pictures...The Mister who had it before, covered every opening...windows, doors...with sheets and blankets...it was like a tomb...
You can see in this picture, my concern for natural light in the kitchen...
I think the pan was for the drips...
It was also raining that day...and it was raining...pouring actually...right into the living room...

It was stuffed full of furniture, garbage, mail...old clothes and computer accessories...pornography...it was hideous...and filthy...the window casings were rotted so it must have been going on for a very long time..
Scene from creepy movie...
sorting out the treasure...
LIGHT! after removing the curtains and blankets!

To imagine how dirty the room was, you can see the semi "clean" spots where he had hung stuff up...Everything that was on the walls had an outline...I stood there for a minute....took a couple pictures...the smell was awful...the couch was sopping wet as were the clothes and curtains...there was spilled motor oil all over the floor, it had seeped into the wood and the rug...mildew had taken over parts of the wall and the wood floor..





.the ceiling tiles were sagging with the weight of the water...and the floor had warped up about 8 inches 6ft long under the couch and running into the kitchen...

I took a tour of the house...walked thru the kitchen, looked at the pantry..opened the little closet door...where I found a broom...hmmmm...I went back to the living room...and poked those ceiling tiles...several came down...BEADBOARD!....
 If you look close you can see where these tiles originally were snowy white...



went up the stairs...where water was also pouring down the stairs...looked at the bedrooms and their contents...went back downstairs...into the back porch and thought..."nope"...not even going down into the basement...that is my Honey's domain...for now....

I was a little intimidated...no running water, except for the rain running down the wall onto the floor...no electricity...no bathroom...hmmmm....HOLY CRAP!

I went outside for a breather...toured the yard...that is when I took the picture that now graces The Dilletante Proprietor...the dilapidation...dirt...garbage...turned into charm right then...looking at that picture? turned my growing trepidation into want...it was sunk into the dirt, you couldn't even get the door open, bags of garbage were piled in front of it...someone had dug a two foot deep hole to get it open...it was crammed to the rafters with beer bottles, garbage AND old garden tools, doors, enamel ware and miscellaneous other treasure...
 
 that little building stole my heart..




I walked back to the front door...told my Honey to back up the trailer, please...and he did...right over the stairs TO the door...I went to the car, grabbed the tools I had brought, climbed over the trailer, stepped into the living room...and started BEATING the crap outta that couch...

I don't know how they got it into the living room...maybe it was so water logged that it swelled up but it would not fit thru the door so it came out in large chunks...after the first piece came sailing thru the door and into the trailer...narrowly missing my Honey's leg and maiming him severely...he suggested that he go see what he could do about the roof...when I clean? it is a frenzy...and NO man is safe if he dares to cross the path...




I did not think to take pictures before I threw some of the stuff into the trailer...there were over 300 playboy magazines stacked in this living room...when I put the living room on HGTV...several people had a good laugh about the ones left over! It is so funny what people notice....

I spent all day sorting and throwing...our trailer is 8ft wide by 16ft long with 7ft sides....I filled it to overflowing...looking at all the paper and wood the next day? I went Montana on that trailer...why pay to have this trailer emptied at the transfer station?  I sent my Honey for a Sawz All...ripped the old oil tank off the garage, had him cut a door in it....instant burn barrell! 





 
 
 I ended up going back thru that trailer and taking out all the paper and wood and burning it...that barrell burned for days on end....
It is a true money saver...I still use it all of the time for brush and garden waste...the stuff I do not put in the compost pile...
After three days? You could finally walk thru the living room...


5 comments:

  1. I'm tired after reading this. I think I'll take a nap.:) By the way, who brings motor oil into the house?

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  2. My husband would come home from work and tell me about people's homes looking like this all the time. Just small paths to walk thru all the trash. It is hard to believe when you can't see it for yourself.
    I think
    I'll go clean my kitchen!LOL
    Sandi

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  3. I think it is remarkable that you could see the possibilities!

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  4. I just love you guys! You crack me up! After writing this? I went and took a nap! It makes me tired looking at it again...only a Bonehead would bring motor oil into the house Donna! He had a garage, after all. You would not believe some of the things he brought in the house...And Sandi? I have been to a couple of houses like this where the people are still residing...I will not go back...I don't understand the mentality... Barb..I thought of all sorts of possibilities...like buying another house...hee hee! It was the charm, like looking thru a curtain...and being able to see a silhouette.. I am going to go clean my kitchen too! LOL!

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  5. I think there is another tv show for the previous owner - called HOARDERS!!

    You're lucky you can still use a burn barrel, the states I've lived in won't allow it due to air pollution.

    Just found your blog last night, started at the beginning and am reading forward. You're doing a wonderful job!

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