How The Craziness Started

There was actually a time in my life when I stated vehemently and unequivocally that I would never own a house. Since I’m living in my third house in seven years and currently putting the plans together to build the fourth, I think we can safely assume whoever is holding the controls out there in the Universe has a sense of humor, and the joke is definitely on me.

The Garrison House

In 2004, when I was just getting used to being a twenty-something, I bought an adorable little house with a slate roof and arched doorway, and spent the next few years making the inside look as awesome as the outside. Some of that work can be seen under the Garrison House pictures on the Before & After page.

Suffice it to say, I haven’t stopped buying power tools tearing down walls since.

The Memorial House

After there was nothing left to paint, drywall, or tile at the Garrison house, I sold it and moved to a house in the country (with my then-boyfriend and current friend/personal engineering expert, MysteryMan) that needed just a little work. And by that I mean taking this:

And turning it into this:

While whipping the house into shape we spent eighteen months living in old gas station the property. That’s 365+ days in a 400 square foot living space with a cat that thinks he’s a dog, and an Engineer.

If anyone is wondering where my sanity went, it’s probably back in there somewhere.

Hillside Cottage

Currently I’m living in a temporary farm house– which I rented solely for the purpose of pillaging the old junk filled barns on the property– while I finalize the plans for my next house, Hillside Cottage.

Which, if we’re going to get technical about it, is actually another garage I plan on living in while building a for-real house. This one, however, has room for three cars (or, if I’m lucky, two cars and a tractor) and a workshop on the main floor, and a nice 800 sf living space upstairs. The future house that will be attached to it? Well, that’s a project for another year.

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