I found out from our landlord that my building was built in 1914. So the charming things I liked before are even more charming knowing the history of the place.
However, I do have a few words for the former tenants.
Dear tenants,
I'm sure you enjoyed this apartment as much as my husband and I are currently. It has some quirks, like the window-in-every-room law that made a window go from my husband's studio to the dining room, and the bathroom window that gets its light from a skylight above. I wonder if you, too, laugh at how much the floor slants precisely where my desk is, making sitting in my office chair a daily adventure. I wonder if your appliances in the kitchen sat on the same slant and if you thought to prop them up like we did.
But really, people... what were you thinking? There are a bazillion telephone wires all around the house, many of which don't hook up anywhere because some do-it-yourselfer cut them. The wires were crossed when our telephone technician came in. Why did you never clean the exhaust fan, or the ceiling fans, or the lights (yes, the quirky strange 50's light in the dining room)? Why is there metal mesh stuffed in the back corner of the built-in cabinet where the shelf didn't reach? And why didn't anyone want a bathroom renovation before us? You LIKED the next room over's closet taking up all the room in there? Maybe you enjoyed the diagonal step-stretch necessary to get in the bathtub.
Then there's the paint. Everyone likes different colors. Fine. But why oh why did you paint the mouldings all sorts of strange shades including, but not exhausting the options: barbie pink, baby pink, 50's green (you know, Vespa color), and butter yellow? Have you ever heard of white? Why oh why did you repeat previous tenants' mistakes of not taping off the window when you painted, so that I had to scrape off an inch along the perimeter of four to five layers or paint? Why didn't you clean up the floor when you got paint on it?
I must thank you for keeping the super-cool 20s-ish mouldings around the door and for not painting the built-in cabinet--the wood is so pretty on it. The floors could be much worse off, and the apartment sure has a lot of space. But next time you live somewhere (if you're still living), think of the people who will live there afterward and try to make their lives a tiny bit easier.
Sincerely,
Blythe
Comments (1)
Comment for the below post: YUM! I'm coming to your house for dinner!
Comment for this post: I am at my sister's house in Indiana and we painted today...we feel your pain. Purple and pink walls(and windows here and there). I guess not quite as horrid as yours, at least that's what it sounds like. How fun to be able to make a house your own though!