We are renting the biggest part of an old frame house in a shore town in Connecticut. We are a walk from great coffee shops and even a little movie theater that shows first-run films.
We rent because we took not a bath but a substantial shower when we sold our last house, and neither one of us wanted to sink more money into a place than we would make when we pull out. Plus, we fancy ourselves trendsetters, but turns out old farts renting isn’t all that new a thing.
During our first year at this place, the former living room and sun room of the house, which was built by our landlady’s grandparents, was given over to an office for an oil company owned by our landlady and her husband.
I cannot say enough nice things about these folks. They are quick when we have questions, and we pay our rent on time. What’s not to like?
So last night, the landlady knocked on the door with a proposition. They sold the oil company a few months ago, and tried to rent out the little office, without much success. They’re thinking about tearing down the walls that separate our apartment from the office, and they wondered if we’d like to have the two extra rooms, all while paying the same rent.
Would we? We said we’d think about it, and took roughly four minutes to do so.
Funny thing is, we’ve offloaded most of our furniture and don’t actually have the stuff to fill up the extra rooms. (Not to worry, I kept the two chicken lamps, including the one pictured above.) The weird thing is we’re hesitant to buy more stuff, because that’s how it starts, you know. We spent our 30s 40s, and some of our 50s accumulating stuff, and then we moved (two times in one six-week period last summer) and gave away or threw out enough for another house and I have to admit, it felt good to offload and we’ve both been very careful about our purchases.
What a weird place to be.
Dating Jesus 
Sounds like a good idea to me.
Offices? Room(s) for the grandbabies? You could get one those yuuuuuge TVs and make a media room, (That’s a chunk of change, though.) A place to practice the banjo?
Maybe ask the owners to make it just one big room? Maybe install one of those salon type bathrooms with a tub that fills from the ceiling…a steam shower…a steam room.
Lots of possibilities.
Here’s the conundrum: We don’t want to buy furniture to fill up this big house. We’ve downsized — three times — and now I look at purchases (when we make them) by weight: Do I want to lift or pack that to move again? I do not. I know this isn’t a big problem. It’s a good problem. I just don’t want to get all acquisitive at this stage in the game.
Ah……
But I understand about downsizing and keeping it simple.
For years and years I only hung on to what I could get into the back of the pickup. And most of the time that included an Electra Glide. But after learning how to pack up necessaries into saddlebags and bedroll, getting everything into the pickup wasn’t that difficult. (Lost a lot of dishes, though. And the dogs rode up front.)
I am looking at a set of china my father bought me back in ’81. I hate the pattern, even though I picked it out. I’d give it away, but my dad bought it, you know? And that may be the extent of extraneous stuff I still pack around.
When I downsized once decades ago, I had a china set from my Grandmother I couldn’t haul around. Didn’t want to risk breaking it.
So I gave it to some close friends. Those very close friends, as it turns out, that are sheltering me now!
So I get to use it from time to time…as long as I’m willing to wash them. (Not dishwasher safe.) A beautiful set and a marvelous way to remember my Grandmother.
That’s so cool that you get to eat off of those plates. I never use mine — ever. But I can’t throw it out or give it away until one of the grandgirls gets old enough to want china — if any of them every do.
The extra room could be a cool grandbaby camp-out room! You don’t need to buy furniture. Put up a tent (they aren’t too expensive if you don’t have one). We put one in a room when the kids were little and they loved it!
That is really nice of them to offer to do that for you!
It really is. I refuse to buy a bunch of crap. We already have a tipi for the babies.
Perfect! As a kid, I used to make a tent with a big blanket hung over a high string, and sides held out with heavy books. And you could put a plastic tablecloth down on the floor and have picnics. That’s way more fun than sitting at a table for little ones. No new furniture required!
Or, gather a bunch of large boxes from a grocery store and let the little ones (with granny’s help) tape them together to build a tunnel-Fort for the room. Furniture is so uncreative anyway.
Or, use string to make up games….make a string circle and try to toss rolled up socks into it from far away or roll a ball into it, make a string track/path for toy trains or cars.
😊
I need to have you over for a play date. Great ideas.
I’m in!
Hammocks and lawn chairs
PREcisely! Thank you.