Sunday, September 26, 2010

Fried Pickles Anyone?

This weekend a Pickle Festival took place in a town an hour from my home. As four open houses in my price range coincided with the festival, I drove there on a gorgeous fall-in-the-air Saturday.

I arrived in town just as the parade was marching through the main street. There were no parking places and the policeman gestured me onto a side road that went on and on. Finally I turned around and sat in a parking lot entrance until the parade ended with hoots from the fire engines. No, I did not try the fried pickles!

Just wanted to show some of the amazing architecture in this town which at one time must have had some money. The festival, a small section of which is shown here, had many purveyors of goods from pickles to crafts. Also, various food kiosks where I bought a hot dog for lunch which I later regretted. The festival was packed! It was wonderful to see people have fun in a simple and down home manner.

Meanwhile, I toured four totally unique and amazing houses. The first, and only house I might reasonably live in, was a ranch of 5 rooms totally and tastefully redone with granite counters and beautiful custom made kitchen cabinets and a master bedroom with a sitting area leading to the deck and hot tub. With almost 2 acres and a huge heated garage and a price of $169,000 this was a winner.



The second house seen above was a Victorian from the early 1900's with a curved front porch, gorgeous wood door and window frames, 3000 square feet, three and a half bathrooms. Upstairs was a second kitchen and bath and living room and bedroom. The rooms were a maze of amazing features. Mostly it was in original condition ie: had not been yupified. One room was packed with bookcases and books (a rare feature. In the over 70 houses I have seen probably 5 had bookshelves and books. ) Totally inappropriate for a 65 year old single person but what a trip to see!


The third house was a partially converted church with much work/money still required. I especially loved the belltower with bell still present. And the large kitchen/living room/dining area all open and with a wonderful bohemian feel to it. The owners had added a new staircase to the upstairs and the handrail came from a Yale library!!! Well, my Dad went to Yale so you can imagine this handrail really meant a lot to me. Later, I noticed a huge, old cloth wall hanging in the dining room on which the words from the Yale Whippenpoof song were written. My dad sang this song when I was a child. Oh to be younger or at least rich. I would love this church as a house. It was only $154,000.

The fourth house was also extraordinary. A two story house built in the fifties, the kitchen was to die for. Gorgeously redone with granite counters and incredibly beautiful cabinets the house boasted a huge kitchen and dining room, a den, a large living room, a bedroom with doors to a deck and a full bath downstairs. All impeccably done over and cared for. Then up a wonderful staircase you find another full bath, a small bedroom then a huge master suite with its own sink and clawfoot (modern and adorable) tub on a kind of platform. This house was only $199,000. On Cape Cod, you would get an 800 square foot wreck for that. Amazing really.

I had a blast talking with the Realtors, and in one case homeowner, chatting about the home particulars and history. More happened on this extraordinary day but I will save the second part for another post.

17 comments:

Mim said...

well - wow! sounds like a bunch of good options - that last one sounds a gem!

Marion said...

Suki,what a great day this was for you! I wish you had tried the fried pickles; I have always wanted to try them...I love ordinary pickles.

The prices of the homes you quoted are astoundingly low! Very few houses are under $250,000 here, and certainly no beauties like these. What fun you must have had looking through these lovely homes.

I can't wait for the second half of this post...

sukipoet said...

I have never even heard of fried pickles before y'day

Robin said...

Ooooh...Suki - you had a great day! Can't wait to hear about the rest of your adventure. ALL of the houses are gorgeous....and the $$$...excellent! They would all be well over 3 or 4 million in SF....

The town sounds wonderful...and only an hour from where you are now.... (but, I think I would pass on the fried pickles)!

As for the Yale Song....."C" went to Yale.....Boola Boola!

Love,

♥ Robin ♥

Lynne with an e said...

This sounds like such a fun day. I would have loved to tag along with you. Small town festivities and poking through other peoples' houses, yes! That 5 room rancher sounds pretty sweet.

Unknown said...

I love the white farmhouse :)

pickles are meant to be cold and wet - not hot and crispy - eeew!

marianne said...

Wow what beautiful houses!
Is it one hour south or North?
Fried pickles that sounds yucky but I have never tasted them so I should try before judging.....

It all looks nice there......
Maybe you should take a look there how it is in the muddy season?

Have a nice Sunday!

patti said...

It's great that you have so much choice, they all sound good. A nice community also.

Teri and her Stylish Adventure Cats said...

Oh...it was so nice to hear the excitement in your voice as you talked about the houses you saw...can't wait to hear more! That first house sounded wonderful--ranch (one level is good); a sitting area in the bedroom; a hot tub and granite counters. Would love to see some photos!

I have tried fried pickles and the term 'not memorable' comes to mind, but might try them again someplace different in case I just had a bland batch...

Lynn Cohen said...

Well it definately sounds like you have something up your sleeve (house #1)...I am hoping with crossed fingers that whatever you want to happen happens for you. It sounds exciting!!!

I would imagine fried pickles are alot like fried green tomatoes, another something I have never tried.

Will you be in a different state if you move to that area you visited?

Good luck.

studio lolo said...

oh my, I'm drooling over that white rambling Victorian!

My father in law went to Yale. crew was such a huge part of his life even when he was in his eighties.

I hope the next post tells us you made an offer!

;)

And I detest pickles. Maybe frying them would make them a bit more tasty?
Funny, because as a kid I loved them!

~Babs said...

Sounds like a great day.
I love garlic pickles,and bread and butter pickles, but I've never had fried.

So are you packed yet? The ranch sounds perfect to me.
May it be so,,,

Umā said...

Um, Suki, you're making me want to move to wherever this place is. The houses sound amazing - why are they so cheap? That church is amazing looking, and the Victorian with a curved porch? Wow!

Dianne said...

All these houses sound wonderful! I am not sure what your price range is, but I love these houses, especially the large gardens with lots of trees etc. I also like the look of the white Victorian.

Lisa at Greenbow said...

What a wonderful day. I don't like fried pickles I think you were wise to not try them. I enjoyed hearing the Whiffenpoofs sing too.

Cris, Artist in Oregon said...

Sounds like you had a fun day. You do get alot more for your money out your way. You have to decide which is more important I guess. we thought the room and property more important then staying where we had nicer weather. we havent been sorry.

Katiejane said...

Oooo, this is so exciting! I love looking at these wonderful old houses. What gems they are.
Hope you decide on one of these. (I especially like the church too!)