Life in a Chicken Coop
When we moved from Kenya to South Africa, we first settled in Pretoria, the country's capital city. We lived near the botanical gardens and those gardens were just lovely. We moved into the residence where the Burke's, who were relocating back to the United States, had been living. It was located on a nice plot of land on the outskirts of town. The main house was owned by Steyn and Maynie. They lived there with their son Peter, who was just a little bit older than Nick. I loved the main house. It was a traditional home with a thatched roof and hardwood floors. Beautiful and romantic, I remember. Tom rented one of the bedrooms to use as an office for the church. It was a good thing that room was available, because while our home was adequate for the 3 of us, there was certainly no extra office space.
We lived in a converted chicken coop. The building was long and very narrow. It was divided down the middle. The kitchen, bathroom and both bedrooms were on one side of a long line and the dining and living room area took up the other side. Looking back, it's kind of cool to think I lived in a converted barn-type of residence. It appeals to my sense of adventure and romantic notions. There were two challenges about living there though. One was that the only bathroom was accessed through the master bedroom. The upside of that is that I was quite motivated to always have a neat and tidy room! The other challenge was furniture placement in the living room. What a long, narrow space it was!
We must not have measured before purchasing the couch and chair. They were both big and over-stuffed, way too big for the space. Walking through the space was like maneuvering through a maze. And if the size wasn't bad enough, I'm not sure what we were thinking when we choose the pattern. It was our first purchase of real furniture as a married couple. We must have been very excited because we chose a pattern that was, let's say, quite celebratory. Random splashes of teal and fuschia all over (luckily) a subdued tan background. (You might remember my dilemma of which plates to buy in Nairobi - I think my style confusion continued with this sofa set...) The cushions were comfortable, however. And they were well-made! They lasted through as least 4 moves...
We lived in a converted chicken coop. The building was long and very narrow. It was divided down the middle. The kitchen, bathroom and both bedrooms were on one side of a long line and the dining and living room area took up the other side. Looking back, it's kind of cool to think I lived in a converted barn-type of residence. It appeals to my sense of adventure and romantic notions. There were two challenges about living there though. One was that the only bathroom was accessed through the master bedroom. The upside of that is that I was quite motivated to always have a neat and tidy room! The other challenge was furniture placement in the living room. What a long, narrow space it was!
We must not have measured before purchasing the couch and chair. They were both big and over-stuffed, way too big for the space. Walking through the space was like maneuvering through a maze. And if the size wasn't bad enough, I'm not sure what we were thinking when we choose the pattern. It was our first purchase of real furniture as a married couple. We must have been very excited because we chose a pattern that was, let's say, quite celebratory. Random splashes of teal and fuschia all over (luckily) a subdued tan background. (You might remember my dilemma of which plates to buy in Nairobi - I think my style confusion continued with this sofa set...) The cushions were comfortable, however. And they were well-made! They lasted through as least 4 moves...