I really had no idea what to expect when I went to see where my Dad was now living. He just kept telling me that he looked at the place one day, bought it the next and wasn't planning on coming back for a few months. So when I asked about the house he'd say, I don't know or I don't remember. He's been down in Punta Gorda for a few months now and living in the house, but he still was mum about it's condition. He did tell me the place was pink. I thought it was going to be as pink as this flower, I found on his back patio, but actually it's a dusty rose that pretty much looks like a rosy tan.
Tom, my Dad and I arrived fairly late and after dark. My heart was beating pretty fast as I was so nervous about what I'd find when he opened the door to the inside.
Oh heck! He was pulling my leg, as it is a real nice place. The problem for my Dad was that he purchased the place furnished and still with a lot of the former owners things - so it was a little overwhelming for him. That's why he was so vague about the place.
The outside is nice, if not a typical looking Florida style modular home. Everyone in his community has a house like this, but interestingly, they are all different. Some are bigger, some smaller, different colors, landscaping and driveways, the patio's are different or the homes are higher off the ground. When you look down the street you don't feel as though you are seeing the same image. I like that.
Here is my Dad's carport. Lots of light comes into the house because of the lack of walls. It bothers me in my place that two sides of my condo are windowless. He doesn't have that problem at all.
The back patio needs some love, but I can see my Dad entertaining friends back here in the near future.
He even has a storage area where the former kitchen cabinets now reside. The two gray bins are going back with me to Jacksonville the next time I come down. We gathered up all as many items as possible that my Dad either didn't like or wasn't needed in his place. The house was full of lighthouses, in the form of little statues, plaques, wall decor, dishtowels, etc. He wasn't too keep on keeping all of that. The decorations in the house were also pretty girly. Tea cups and saucers and tons of items with flowers. We deflowered the place :)
By the time I left I had gone through every nook and cranny and divided everything we found into piles - Humane Society (towels and blankets), Habitat for Humanity Resale store (unwanted items that I didn't want), trash, keep and the Gray Bins. I will have a booth in an antique mall in a few weeks, so all of the items that I thought I could sell there, I put in the bins.
I haven't edited the inside photos yet, so I hope to have that finished for tomorrows post.
I really think my Dad is going to be happy there. Especially now that the decorations are more to his liking! I don't know if he is going to be a year round resident or just a winter resident. I don't even think he knows. He'll figure it out.
Until then - he's got a great place.
Thanks for stopping by!
Kristin
