Crazy Stable

Maybe it's the recent arrival of a landmine, er, landmark birthday, but I find myself longing for a makeover: a total face- and body-lift, full cosmetic overhaul, and some kind of snug and snazzy white couture to keep the whole refurbished architectural miracle upright and fabulous.

No, not her, stupid, this!

Now that's what I call plastic surgery. This neighbor's house here in "Victorian Flatbush" is a dead ringer for the CrazyStable, and the new owners are doing  exactly what we need. (I don't recall what theirs looked like before--probably better than ours.) I pulled over to a screeching halt when I noticed that they have taken the side of the architectural angels and gone for a total reshingling. And it looks like damn nice work, too; look at how they're trimming the Tyvek around this nifty old window. They've also redone the porch, the soffits (with nice slick joinery) and the rear deck...drool, drool.

So, a big CrazyStable shout-out to these old-house lovers for just saying No to entombing their gem in "easy-care" vinyl or boxy aluminum--the fates of countless old sagging wooden homes like ours. Hey, not that I blame folks who choose siding; one understands that decision the first time one gets a quote for replacing all the cedar shakes and scraping, priming, and repainting all the wood trim on a three-story, 3,000-square-foot pile with 60-odd windows. (Price of historically appropriate total facelift: $1 gazillion. Aesthetic integrity: priceless.) But it's a sad compromise, one that we have refused to make. Having an exterior renovation budget of zero, we have chosen the high ground: deferred maintenance, prayer, and sweeping up stuff as it peels and falls off. Meanwhile, I got the contractor's phone number from the dream job above, so I'm ready for that day when our ship comes in. The fellows will have their work cut out for them, as you can see from this close-up of our south facade. "Weathered"...not the runway look we old girls are hoping for.

With thanks to our neighbors for permission to post the photos above...and hopes they will treat us in the future to a guest posting about the nitty-gritty of this fantasty makeover, painful anesthesia and all.