Hick House Downstairs Entry: Abandon All Hope of Luxury, Ye Who Enter Here

Thursday, Hick offered me a tour of Hick House again. HOS (Hick's Oldest Son) had done some painting the night before. "It looks a lot different!" Hick is an eternal optimist. Val... not so much. I went, but only on the condition that Hick would pick me up at the post office in SilverRedO. I wasn't about to risk T-Hoe's arthritic gear box just to visit a $5000 house.

I stood in the small front yard for a picture of the side porch. I LOVE that porch! In fact, I might love it even more than the upstairs Sunroom that I think has so much potential.

Upon closer inspection, the front wall of Hick House is covered with the tarpaper brick, and not actual bricks. The porch, though, is built like a brick...um...porch. Hick and HOS are currently storing HOS's FREE siding that they're planning to use on the top front triangle area by the Sunroom, and also on the front of the house there at the porch. And also maybe that downhill side of the house where they replaced the windows. Depends on how much siding HOS can get. Right now the poor porch is kind of their staging area.

Stepping inside the front door, I could tell how much brighter the area was after HOS's first coat of paint. By no means is it finished, but it gives you an idea what it can become. Too bad I didn't have many before pictures of this area. But this is still pretty much before it's livable.

Straight ahead as you enter, we have the door to the future master bedroom. It's best that door remains closed right now. That's Hick Central, where he has his saw set up under the peeling ceiling.

If you turn right upon entering the front door, you see the landing of the two steps, and the door that leads to the other two flights of stairs that take you up to the Sunroom.

HOS's painting did not progress that far. Not sure how he got to the ceiling there with his tools on the landing.

It's amazing how a coat of paint can make an area seem light and airy, rather than gloom-and-doomy.

If you look left upon entering the front door, you see the living room. It's also kind of a staging area right now. Looks like HOS has saved every cigarette butt from every break. And looks like he takes a mustard break, too! I don't know what that's all about.

Don't worry, a baby doesn't live here! Hick had that bouncy seat in one of his storage units. He brought it over because HOD (HOS's Oldest Daughter) brought HOS's eight-month-old baby over early one day, and they needed something to keep him in! Can't have a loose baby in Hick House!

The window faces down the hill. It's the big one you saw in the outside picture of the window replacements. There's Hick, lurking in the doorway to the kitchen. He's got his installed cabinets plastic-ed off from the drywall work they've been doing.

More on the living room another time. This was just to give you an idea of the layout, and how much work Hick and HOS have to go.