[Joan.of.the.Arch]

The house I live in was 450 square feet until after WWII. That includes the one closet and the bathroom space. A family of eight lived here! After the war one of the grown children married and added two rooms and a half bath so that the new couple could live there with any children they may have and be near to help the aging parents with the grown, retarded brother. The addition made the house 900 square feet, still much bigger than some of the homes spoken of in the article. Other houses in my neighborhood are smaller, but rarely these days does a family of 8 or more live in them.

We are in the city in a very convenient place. Close to stores, parks, all sorts of entertainment, schools, work, doctors, restaurants, coffee shops, etc. This enables us to be a one car family despite four drivers.

I am a serious gardener of both edibles and ornamentals, so we chose a place with a great yard for that endeavor. Yet there is so little lawn that I could cut it with scissor-like grass sheers if necessary. Peaceful safe neighborhood, beautifully adorned with color this fall! I also love my front porch for peacefully watching the world go by and visiting. Last night a friend biked over around 8:30 and we sat on the glider and chatted in the dark. In the back, I have a too large concrete patio which I was inspired to enclose with shrubbery to gain the privacy of a walled Moorish style garden. A salvaged table and plastic chairs serve for occasional outdoor dining on the patio. At the back of the lot is a 2 car garage off the alley. I tore down the front third of the garage (there is still room for 2 cars) and over the remaining slab, built a huge attached arbor. It is about 16' wide X 14' deep X 7' high. In a couple of years it will be covered by a combination of grapes, roses, and annual vines.

We reroofed the house and garage recently and did not have to finance it as the job was relatively small. Utility bills are low, even though we have no insulation in these old foot thick brick and plaster walls. We do have updated, tight windows, so that helps. The small hardware store 2 blocks aways carries all kinds of items that an old house sometimes needs. Like--the chain that connects the ornamental iron ventcover to the metal closure flap . There are ugly awanings of two different material types over the south windows and front porch. But they all function so well, that I keep them. The previoous owners had access to quality work and materials for the house, and I really appreciate it now. Limestone front porch, steps, and faoundation. Three stained glass windows. The house was built to last and needs few interventions.

My family from Australia says we and our house would fit in there well. My friends from China say our house is big. My friends from Mexico say they would rather live in one of the luxury highrise apartments next to the park. My friends from the 'burbs [used to] say that it is a cute starter house, but after raising our kids I think they realize we weren't intending to move "up" or "out." My city friends think we have a peculiarity for liking small living spaces, having seen our even smaller apartments before we bought the house.

Tiny little house...great big satisfaction.