The Bend: What We Bought

This is the first day we brought the kids out to see what their parents had bought.  They were excited (and Jane was dressed for the occasion).  Look with us at what we were up against.

The front.

Here we are making the initial entry.  I'm not sure I have another photo, so I'll mention in this one that the radio antenna you see on the east (right) wall of the house was so rusted out that the only things holding it up were a couple of screws on a little strap securing it to the side of the house.  All three legs were rusted completely through.

Love the green porch carpet. 

The white paint on the ceiling was peeling away and we could see that the porch ceiling used to be painted blue.  This was known as "haint blue" because it is supposed to keep the haints (ie., haunts---ghosts) away.  We will continue this tradition when we get to the painting stage.
(Maybe we should have heeded the foreshadowing of the burglar bars on the door. )

  The Living Room.

Window units and wires in the living room.

Probably good that you couldn't see my face in this picture. It would have been one of shock, horror, and maybe a little nausea as I entered the kitchen. But how cool is the fly-swatter hanging right there on the wall?

 The Kitchen

The cabinetry was actually pretty clean and in good condition. The green sink and floor tiles were not.  The stove was huge and probably worked just fine, but, well, ...

To the left of the fridge there was a closet of sorts.  Not sure what was kept in here. The vacuum, obviously, and there was a gun rack.  Otherwise, seemed kind of wasted space that could have been put to good use...stay tuned!  The open door leads through a utility room and out the back door.  

Kitchen window complete with towel rack (I guess that's what that is).

Water heater and breaker box.

View into kitchen from laundry room.

The Laundry/Utility Room.

This used to be a back porch.  Now it is enclosed.  Note the outdoor siding on the left wall. And the mildew on the haint blue ceiling.

I do like this light fixture.  It's a keeper.

The Bathroom

Oooh, where to start.  With the green shower walls or the blue floor?  Or maybe the galvanized pipe handles. 

Safety first.  Ok, one day I'll probably regret taking the pipe handles out.

Potty and heater. :)

The Bedrooms

Back left bedroom.  Lovely reading lamp on the wall.

Closet door and another heater.  These remind me of my Grandma Hazel and PopPop's house.

Master Bedroom.  Aren't the floors nice?  Can't wait to see them refinished.

Here I am, getting the party started by removing all of the drapery hardware.

 The back.

The back door. See the siding where they closed in that little utility room.  These steps lasted a few weeks before they completely caved in.

So there you go.  The good, bad, and ugly.  Hopefully more good than bad.  And we can fix ugly.