Sunday, June 6, 2004

Solo On: My House ^_^

Azure, you're so rude! ^_~ Anyway, My house is called Chinthay, and sits in a small village (well, technically it’s a Hamlet, because it’s not even big enough to be a village) called Hambrook, sitting right on the western edge of the county of West Sussex. Assuming you were coming to visit, the first thing you’d notice would be the road leading to my driveway. At the moment it’s almost overgrown with stinging nettles and trees that form a tunnel-like canopy over the top. Think the rocky path at the beginning of Spirited Away, only bigger. The road’s about that uneven, too: we (being the residents of the lane) resurfaced it using a tractor and a roller-trailer-thing years and years ago. It’s like going over a whole set of speed bumps at different heights. So, go slowly or you’ll wreck your suspension. The next thing you’d notice about my house is the driveway and garden. We have two large gardens, and both are as nice as the other. The front’s got less in it in terms of stuff to walk around in, but it looks lovely. In the centre is a big palm tree on a raised bed, surrounded by lots of little grassy plants, and near that is another bed with a tree, some brick displays and more little plants. Flower beds almost surround the rest of the garden, which itself if bordered on three sides by tall oak and sycamore trees. Almost immediately after seeing the garden comes the house, which sits quite conveniently between the front and back gardens. From the outsdide, it looks… fairly rustic. In an Old English house kind of way. There are climbing plants climbing their planty way up the house exterior (and interior, as we discovered some months ago when a vine popped into my bedroom underneath the window). There’s a red front door to the left; part of the original house, and another door on the smaller part, which is the extension. That was built in 1993 when my grandparents were moving down to live with us and ironically, the same time that I broke my leg. One of the builders bought me a LEGO set ^___^ I’ll never forget him, heh. Inside, it’s a bit of a mess. There’s stuff on almost every single surface available, and even some of the ones that aren’t available. All these books and pieces of paper and videos and CDs and toys and bits of armour and things that you didn’t even know you had and scraps of newspaper and bits of things and pens and pencils and bits of other things and staples and furry things and figurines and junk, anything much you can think of. But it’s never what you’re actually looking for. Inside the house, there is: a sitting room, a hallway, a dining room, a study, a tiny room under the stairs (more like a cupboard, really), a kitchen, a utility room, another hallway, a toilet, a bathroom, an office, a weaving room, a spinning room (they used to be a lounge and another dining room for my grandparents before they died), a landing, four bedrooms, a library (which is where I am now, basically a small room with my dad’s science-fiction books lining the walls), a toilet, another bathroom and an attic. If you count hallways and the cupboard, it’s 22 rooms. If not, it’s only actually 19. But it’s still pretty big to most people who visit. The sitting-room’s the biggest room in the house, and it’s where most of the DVD and TV watching goes on, as it’s where the Sky Digibox sits. The sofas are nice and comfy, but rather old now. We put dustsheets and throw rugs on top to make it more comfortable, but where I like to sit is usually where other people like to sit as well, and it gets messed up rather quickly. I’m always having to readjust it >.> The bedrooms aren’t much- pretty standard stuff. The only thing that differs is the stuff, colour and furniture. My bedroom’s very red. The walls aren’t particularly dark (in fact, they’re almost white), but the floor and curtains are. I like dark reds. Burgundy, bordeaux, all sorts. My bed has either a creamy set of sheets with a blue, red and gold geometric pattern, or a black, marble-esque style, which is my personal favourite. When the room’s tidy it looks lovely. And I’ve the best view of the back garden from my room ^_^ It’s a sizeable garden, and a fantastic view in a golden-red sunset. Or even on bright sunny days. Or in the snow. Or when it’s raining… There’s a lot of development going on in the back garden. We’re building a small Japanese-style fenced-off area of the garden at the very back, with a layered pond and a lovely red Acer tree. There’s a stone pathway that cuts across a few areas of the grassy bit, although there’s still a large clear area in the middle. Big black metal fences with ornamental lights surround the raised part- the garden’s actually three to four feet higher than the floor of the house, and we’ve a patio that leads around the building, linking to the garden. We’ve huge bamboo plants growing (and spreading >.>) towards the back, near a large… um… nice tree. And there’s a compost heap behind the woodshed- oft referred to as the ‘glory hole’ or ‘beauty spot’. I put grass cuttings there once I am done de lawn-moowing. And that is bloody hard work in our gardens o_o; I very much like my house. It’s cluttered, and it would be nice to have at least some rooms tidy. But if I spent all my time cleaning then I’d never be able to relax. This place feels lived in- it’s not sterile. It’s interesting, if nothing else. Simply put, I just love living here. It’s been my home for almost 19 years; I hope it will be for some while longer.

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