They say that people have a “dream house” that they are
destined to want. Some people are
fortunate to have found their dream house and some people more than one, but
maybe not all at the same time. They do
change over time as well. What started
out as a dream house can become a nightmare over the long haul. That’s because the house ages, as we all do
and our wants and needs change.
The old house at one time was my dream house, because this
is where I was born and raised and it was always “my big white house” growing
up. I wanted to live here forever, but
that changed as I grew. When I got
married and moved into our first home, it was a 4th floor penthouse
apartment in south Vancouver. Pretty
cool, but hardly a dream as there were no elevators or parking. My van and my motorcycle were parked
somewhere on the street within a block of the building and my boat remained
here with my parents.
Then we had saved enough for a down payment on a townhouse
in Richmond. A very nice complex with
nice neighbours, but again with limited parking. My wife’s car and my motorcycle were in the
tiny carport and my van stayed in visitor parking. The boat still remained here with Mom and
Dad. It had lots of room, 1500 square
feet with three bedrooms on two floors.
Finally, we moved to my first “dream home” in Surrey. The house was huge, 3200 square feet with a
double garage and a long driveway. This
time the boat came along and was parked beside the driveway, since it was too
long for the garage. By this time, I had
a car, but because one half of the garage was filled with stuff, it got to stay
outside. We had a huge yard that backed
onto a forested area with a creek running behind it. Awesome, but the yard work, oi-vay. It took 90 minutes just to cut the grass,
once a week.
After my separation I moved back home to help Dad and of
course to help me with a much needed place to live. I moved into the old basement suite which had
been converted years ago to a rec room.
The pool table I had built in high school was still standing, which
dominated most of my living area. Dad
was adamant that I not move it either.
It didn’t matter that he had not used it in many years. Finally, after two years of living with no
space, I just folded it up against the wall.
What started out as a temporary situation, stretched into a full 20
years (March 1996 to March 2016) in this tiny and cold basement.
I did love living here, as it was “my big white house” from
my childhood. The location is amazing,
right across the street from Sunrise Park, but the house is old. I did the yard work and maintenance. I even painted the house twice for Dad in
that time. Eventually the house
officially became mine, but by now, age, injury and debt had taken its toll.
My new place is a “dream house” because it is brand new and
it requires no yard work or exterior maintenance and as long as I take care of
it, the interior maintenance will be minimal as well. It met all of my criteria in a home except
for one thing. I wanted a central
furnace so I could later install air-conditioning. I didn’t get the furnace, but the air
conditioning is still a possibility eventually.
It also is built on the edge of a forest with a stream and has a garage
big enough to hold the boat and the truck.
It literally became a “dream house” last night because my
dreams overnight were dominated by this upcoming Wednesday’s “unveiling” for
want of a better term. I call it that,
because I literally have not been inside my actual unit yet and have not
physically seen a unit with my floor plan.
My dreams were so dominant last night that when I woke up this morning,
I was completely disoriented as to where I actually was. My current space looks different without the
huge speakers and it took me a few minutes to wake up and figure out my
location.
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