Wednesday, August 19, 2009

Chit-chat Wednesday - In love with BIG BRICK!


Following on from my previous post about life in Little Brick Cottage, it must be said that on the weekend I fell in love with little Brick's big sister – Big Brick! I had resisted looking at her for a few weeks, despite the Scribe's urging, as I knew she would be out of our price range.

However, on a sunny Saturday I had some shopping to do and so I went to inspect the house the Scribe was so enthusiastic about. I've often developed crushes on houses (my current book is based around a certain real house in Tasmania) but never have I experienced falling desperately in love with a pile of bricks and mortar from the moment I walked in the door.

It felt as if the house breathed me into her very bricks, as if she was as excited to see me as I was to view her. She was truly magnificent. The Scribe had already described in loving detail all her glories and so I was prepared -but not quite ready for how perfect she really was.

She wasn't grand, there was still work to do on the old lady; she had a shabby side. She was a three-bedroom, very pretty Victorian house. She had my favourite feature (exposed brick) and a perfect wooden staircase.

The staircase made my heart sing. It was like a staircase from a children's book leading to a magical land above. And indeed the rooms above were magical for space and storage! I'm sure Narnia would fit in the lovely massive built-in wardrobe. I'm sure our Little Brick Cottage would fit in that wardrobe! Add a truly perfect series of stained glass windows and the brick kitchen even had the original servant's bells.

I wandered through her as if in a dream. I could hear the laughter and whispers of the many children who had lived and played within her walls. This was a house of friendly ghosts.

The Scribe had been so smitten when he had viewed her that he hadn't wanted to leave. He had heard many viewers complaining about 'our house' – even having the audacity to mention open-planning and modernizing her!

When I could finally tear myself away I was almost in tears. For a short time I could see my family living, loving and restoring Big Brick to what she deserved.

The real-estate agent asked me if I liked the house and, all reason long departed, I enthusiastically said I did. How much do you think she will go for?" was his next sneaky question. Still shaking like a lunatic in love, I whispered the sorrowful truth. "Over a million." He looked shocked at the honest reply. I could see he was frantically trying to work out whether this was some new mind game I was playing with him.

"Nah," he said. "I'd say mid-800s to early 900s".Previously they had told the Scribe the auction would start at the early 900s.

"We'll see," I said, resisting the temptation to push him out the door and barricade myself within. I retired to the nearby churchyard to listen to a magpie sing a doleful song about foolish girls who look at houses priced above their budget and fall in love with Big Bricks.

Fingers crossed the new moon brings some good fortune our way! As I told the Scribe – if we miss this one, there'll be something even better ahead for us! We'll attend the auction on Saturday and pray it will be passed in until we are in a position to buy her!

Have you ever had an experience like that, where you feel irrationally in love with something that wasn't a human being? A pile of bricks? Shoes? Some other item? Post and tell me if you did and share your wild irrational longing with me!

9 comments:

  1. I have the same ailment as yourself. With the only difference being the location, tis in the Qld rainforest. I knew it was foolish to look and that I would be instantly smitten. My
    daydreams see my little family living in that home and life is indeed grand lol! Damnit off to buy another lotto ticket sigh!

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  2. Oh, my. This sounds just like us and Willow Manor. WT found it first and fell in love just like your scribe. And it was a miracle we got it, too, 21 years ago this month.

    I've got my fingers crossed for you...toes, too! :^)

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  3. When we first walked into our old Petrol Station, which is now our home, I just knew. There were 70's ruffled carpets on the floor, dusty sunfilter curtains at the windows and red matting throughout the bedrooms. Cupboards were made from ex-government desk wood and the hole in the roof leaked as if the tap had been turned on full blast (butterfly roof). This was totally different to what I love, what I would have chosen, had I planned. I came onto the knowledge of this by chance, and yet - when I walked into the kitchen, with all it's odd wooden floor boards, and housing the tiniest of combustion stoves, set in the 'sea' of old bricks, I knew it was the house for me.
    Today, most aspects of the house have been changed to accommodate our family of five, as well as the three foster boys we cared for at one time, but this is our 16th year of life at 'home'.
    xxx

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  4. Oh I can relate. I love "shopping" for real estate because it is like a rush for me. But then it is all too depressing when the actual numbers get in the way (those pesky numbers!). It sounds like a magical home though...

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  5. I love fantasising about my dream house ... but, I always fantasise in practical terms and if it would be a good investment (that's the entrepreneur in me).

    Little Brick sounds cute and Big Brick sounds magical: Can't wait to read your book. :)

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  6. Hi Josephine!
    I hope you are well, today is a hot, hot day here in Singapore, but noooo I´m not complaining at all:)

    Regarding your question I´m not sure to what you were referring...sorry. Ehhhh, the chain is from Chic Antique and my plan is to change the photos that I take now and then:).

    I am so sorry if I haven´t understood you correctly...

    Hugs Gunilla in Singapore

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  7. Just added you to my blog roll - I thought you were on there already so I was surprised when I found you missing! So..I'm trying to piece things together from the few entries I've read here and there - you write for a living ya? And you want to buy this beautiful house but it might be too expensive? And you live in Oz...I need to obviously just read more of your blog for more clues, don't I?! As for Oxford - yeah you should go again - and there are plenty more places I could recommend as well...have you ever been to Scotland? I've got such a passion for that place... xxx

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  8. well there was the string of broome pearls i tried on once about 10 years ago (while in broome). i don't usually care about expensive jewellery, but once these had cast their spell on me, i began to seriously think we could afford to spend $30,000 on a necklace! if we lived in a caravan perhaps ...
    good luck with the house!

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  9. I can relate to this soooo much. I longed for a little cottage for so long. We were always at open homes in the early years of being married (married 18 years)but never had the money, somehow I thought it would happen though, we would buy a home where I could plant my own garden, not one for someone else. It didn't happen though until almost 2 years ago. We bought the house we had been renting for 7 years. It's not the house I dreamed of but it's OK just it's 25 years old and I wanted at least 95. Our landlord gave us a really good price (a very rare nice landlord) so here we are. I stopped going to open homes years ago though as I hated going when I knew we couldn't buy whereas as husband wanted to go anyway. I couldn't bear it as I fell in love with so many places and then would dream of living in them

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