A Long Way to Fall!

Why couldn't they have built just a few feet further back?! It sure would have saved me a great deal of angst and expense.



There's been quite a bit of movement in the house. How active it is, I don't know. We don't let the kids do too much jumping in this back corner of the house.

The house was built right at the edge of this high bluff... on a sand hill no less. The neglect of maintaining gutters on the back of the house over the years has caused a great deal of erosion. You can see, in the photo below, how much earth has vanished by the old stucco line along the back of the house. I'm almost certain this was "at grade" at one point.

I've investigated helical piers and actually moving the house forward on the property. Both of which are terribly expensive. So for now, I've opted for maintaining the gutters, routing the downspouts away from the house and a lot of prayer. I also cleaned the bank up quite a bit, cut back some of the shading canopy to allow more vegitation to grow. I try to blow the leaves off this portion of the bank each fall as well... so the leaves don't interfere with anything trying to grow. Roots are my new best friend!

Just Hangin' Around

I thought their navigational abilities were unparalleled?! This bat got stuck in a light pull string in one of our closets. Who knows how long he was there before I spotted him. Must have took the turn a little tight and clipped the string. What a way to go! I don't believe I'll be as confident in their ability to avoid hitting me next time one of these guys is swooping around me.

We've had quite a few bats in the house during rennovation over the years... especially when I had the upstairs ceiling ripped out. They would find their way downstairs, fly around at night, sending fecal and urine matter splattering up against freshly painted walls and newly finished trim. Never thought I'd be sanding out bat turds!

Before & After

BEFORE

AFTER

This is what we awoke to the other morning. The house sits on a high bluff overlooking Rosman Creek. The vantage point is spectacular... looking into the tops of the trees. Last year a raccoon family made their home in a tree right outside this dining room window. We had great fun watching them climb up and down their tree and poke their heads out of their tree hole.

Of course, while most see the beauty of this white velvet blanket... my mind goes to hoping the snow blower starts one more time, or why, after 15 inches of cellulose in the attic, do I still have 8 foot long ice cycles, or will my budgeted heating payment be raised again, etc.



This is an access deck I had to build in order to maintain the gutters on the back of the house. I used copper water pipe for balisters.

7500 Square Feet of Bungalow Renovation Ahead of Me

Actually some of the renovation is already behind me. I've wanted to start a blog for a while but didn't have a clue how to go about it. Well... no better time than the present... so here it goes!

A few years have passed since my wife and I purchased this bungalow monster - all 7000 square feet of it. We were taken by the setting. The entire backside of the home overlooking a deep ravine with Rosman Creek wandering through the bottom. Although in the city (with McDonalds just one block away) we enjoy nature around us on all sides. We love it.

Although a complete novice to blogging, I will attempt to replay the restoration events of the past as well as post current projects. Please be patient with my attempts.







The home was built in 1909 by Dr. Robinson and served as his temporary medical office until he built his hospital next door the following year.