Pictures of the House

For those who demanded it!!! Here are the long awaited pictures of the house. Pictures of the INSIDE of the house will be posted later when I have more time.


The Front from the Driveway 

The Back Yard 

Other Side Showing the Garage 
Here's a shot of the house and garage...you can almost see my convertible tucked away inside the garage...


The Other Side of the House 

Detail of the Front Farmers Porch 
Here are details of the side of the house, including the Farmer's Porch. I can't wait until we can find something to put on it to sit on! There's a Chimenea sitting in the basement, just waiting to be used, but we have nothing to sit on.


House as Seen from the Driveway Entrance 
This is probably my most favorite shot - that the house is almost hidden from the road. It provides so much privacy! For those of you who suck at playing "Where's Waldo", the house is sitting in the upper left of the picture behind the foliage... The North 40 is to the right. The picture is taken just as the driveway starts at the road - the mailbox would be on the cameraman's right...


View of the North 40 in the Distance as Seen from the Porch 

Close Up of the North 40 
Here are pictures of the infamous North 40 where I spend all that time mowing. :) So far, I've run into 2 snakes, a large ant hill, and a bunny burrow (yes, the bunnies are OK - I got to them in time - but not before my inner red-headed school girl shrieked when she saw something moving under the hay...).

Things to do - CT Wine Tour, Part 2

Barry and I took in the most fabulous winery this past Sunday - Priam Vineyards produces some of the best wines I've tasted so far - in Connecticut and in general. Their whites are fruity and smooth, and one of their reds puts most Cabernets or Merlots to shame. For $5, you get to taste seven of their wines, and keep the engraved wine glass as a souvenir! Plus, if you want, you can take a glass of wine ($5 for a full glass) up through their vineyards to a gazebo to relax and take in the beauty of the area.

Take Action - Write Your Senator!

The blatantly discriminatory Federal Marriage Amendment is coming up for a vote in the Senate. It is CRITICAL that you write your senators to tell them to vote AGAINST writing discrimination into the constitution for the first time EVER.

The Human Rights Campaign has provided a VERY simple way to write your senators online. You don't even have to know WHO your senators are to participate - the web site will figure all that out for you.

It only takes a few minutes, and the results will be historic.

Walking along Mansfield Hollow Dam

Mansfield Hollow Dam 

Mansfield Hollow Dam 

Mansfield Hollow Dam 

Mansfield Hollow Dam 

Here are some pictures I took with my picture phone while Barry and I were taking a 4 mile walk along an earthen dyke surrounding Mansfield Hollow Lake. The dyke is a very popular walking destination, and with views like this, you can see why.

You've Got Links!

Hey! Great achievement - I found out how to create and use a links section. :) Be afraid...I'm learning HTML... Ack!

Things to do - CT Wine Tour

Barry at Sharpe Hill Vineyard, June 2004 

Here's a picture of Barry when we set out on a gorgeous day to take in 4 of Connecticut's 13 wineries. There was nary a cloud in the sky, the temperature was perfect for an outing in the convertible, and we started with Sharpe Hill Vineyards right near our house in Pomfret CT. For $5, we got to sit in the outdoor courtyard, trying each of their fabulous wines (there were 6 in our tasting - one label had already sold out), and we got to keep our wine glass, embossed with the winery's logo. In addition, you can help yourself to walking through the vineyards while sipping a glass of their wine - I highly recommend this because at the top of the hill there is a breathtaking view of eastern Connecticut.

We also visited Heritage Vineyards in Lisbon, Jonathan Edwards in North Stonington and Stonington Vineyards in...gasp...Stonington. All in all, we really enjoyed Sharpe Hill the best (bought a case there!) and are seriously considering having our wedding there next year. Their restaurant is only open on the weekends by reservation, and boast wonderful wood-grilled meats. Can't wait to try that out!

Wacko Neighbors, or Beware the Mirrors

So my initial reaction to the house when I first was shown it was that it was perfect in all aspects - land size, house size, location - except for one: the wacko neighbor. Here I was, standing in this cute house with an open floor plan, cute farmer's porch on the front, and a gorgeous bay window in the dining area...that looks directly into a KEEP OUT sign painted in red letters on a white background. In addition, he had 3 full length mirrors propped around his yard, all pointing to the new house. "What's up with that?" I asked my realtor. She shrugged, as baffled as I was.


Neighbor's Keep Out Sign 

Needless to say, my initial reaction was to avoid the house. But 3 weeks later, when Barry and I were going from house to house in the area with my real estate agent, I stopped by - mistakenly thinking in my blur of properties that I had seen that it was a different lot than it was. So when we pulled up, I apologized, saying that I must have switched lots in my mind and didn't want to bother him with the house that had the wacko neighbor.

Well, Barry would hear none of that. The house was too cute and too perfect for us, and basically he emphasized that the neighbor wouldn't be a problem because he could "take care of him." I didn't want to know what he meant by that because I might find out one day. :)

In the end, we bought the house, despite the sign which continues to face the property. But as summer creeps upon us, it becomes less and less visible as the overgrowth between our properties takes over. And the mirrors? Well, the neighbor finally moved them and assembled them into a screen-like contraption and placed it within his garden that actually looks really pretty there. I still haven't met them, but then again with the signs, I don't expect I will anytime soon...

Ninja Squirrels

So, I learned a valuable lesson the other day - don't leave your open sliding door unattended when you live in the country. Otherwise, Ninja Squirrels will prance about, seeking nuggets of nutty goodness - and anything else that might be lying around.

I was upstairs engrossed in a video game (many of my friends reading this are probably saying "so what else is new?"). During a break, I came down to get something to drink and the screen to the sliding door was ajar. Immediately, the worst scenes from every horror flick I'd ever watched streamed through my conciousness, making it VERY difficult to contain that inner redheaded school girl. I closed the screen, then carefully stalked through the house, looking for ANYTHING that might have gotten in.

Ten minutes later, my blood pressure was returning to normal when I determined that nothing was in the house with me, when I saw the kitchen garbage can had its lid askew. Then it dawned on me that something had smelled the rich aroma eminating from the repository (OK, OK - give me a break - trash day was 2 days away!), got the screen open, then plunged head first through the trashcan lid to retrieve a prize before scampering back through the screen when they heard me coming down the stairs.

I just want to know where the squirrels have their black ninja outfits made...

Getting to Know Us

Jeff and Barry at Disney's Animal Kingdom Lodge 

I figured I would take some time to introduce ourselves. The picture is that of me and Barry, taken as we were about to end a fabulous 10 day vacation at Walt Disney World. We were sitting waiting for the taxi to take us to the airport when we realized that after 10 days, we didn't have ONE picture of us together. So, this one was hurriedly put together. I'm the tall one. :)

There will be plenty of posts on us later, but I really wanted to try out getting a picture out here, and thought this would be a great one to start with. In the future I hope to have pictures of the house to share.

Lions and Tigers and Bears - Yes, Bears!

News article on local NPR this morning indicated that a young black bear was spotted roaming the streets of Willimantic yesterday. While they *attempted* to sedate him, they apparently didn't give him enough because he simply ambled off and disappeared into the woods. It seems that the bear population has grown recently in the area, and spottings are becoming very frequent.

Things to do - Putnam CT

Here's a great idea for a beautiful day. This weekend we went with friends to The Harvest restaurant in Putnam CT for Brunch. Aside from being reasonably priced, the place served a fabulous meal with the best coffee I've had in a restaurant in ages. After brunch, we went down the road to the main section of town to go antiquing. Aside from the fun of poking around a large collection of tchtchkes, the town also has their variation on the Cow Parade (most recently seen in West Hartford) where calves are painted, decorated, and scattered throughout the town.

And don't forget to walk down to the bridge near the dam - what a beautiful site!

Not in Kansas Anymore

Lions and Tigers and...Coyotes?

Yep. I was nearly home the other night when a really, really scruffy dog ran in front of my car, heading away from my house. Then I realized that it wasn't a dog, but instead a coyote.

Better not leave the cat out.

Is Blogger Mocking Me?

I just noticed that the ad that appeared above my blog was for both a) self-propelled lawn mowers and b) lawn mower repair. Something tells me that Google is examining a bit too much of my web site for it's targeted ad campaigns. I mean, OK, so I've run over a few roots, branches and rocks while mowing my "lawn"...Alright, I've run over a LOT of them.

Hmmm... perhaps I better write down that link before it disappears...

Jeff vs. The Spider, or How Keanu Reaves Saved My Life

"There is no spoon."

This was my mantra when attempting to bestill my rapidly beating heart. My inner red-headed school girl gleefully leapt out as I screamed in horror at the monstrous hairy spider that was sitting on the floor in front of me, waving it's front legs as if it were Morpheus taunting Neo into attacking him one more time in the training simulation.

It took only a moment to glance around, looking for the right weapon in which to vanquish this hideous foe. Spying a worn sneaker set against a door to prevent it from slamming shut (the windows were open since it was a nice spring day), I leapt into the air, everything slowing down so that I was painfully aware of every detail, every moment. Each of the spider's eight beady eyes trained on me as I passed overhead; it jumped to the side in anticipation of something, but not apparently this.

I landed, grabbed the shoe, and tossed it unerringly at my opponent. When time returned to normal, I was left staring at a scene of carnage. The sneaker was coming to rest against a wall, and the spider was twitching in death, mangled by an orthopedic projectile.

Where did I put that leather trench coat...?

Donating Blood, and other Mowing Hazards

Why did I think I wanted to mow the yard?

First of all, "yard" is really stretching the meaning of the word when it comes to my property. It's mostly straw with strands of green poking through it. But there is one area of the North 40 that was getting pretty wild. I probably should have had someone come in to slash it down for hay.

But there was something intoxicating about having a mower. I actually spent two weeks thinking about what I wanted in a mower. It wasn't until my first 5 minutes of walking behind my new shiny self-propelled red mechanical menace that I probably should have gotten something I could RIDE on. DUH. Whatever.

Now, exercise really isn't in my vocabulary. So after 10 minutes, I'm sweating in a way that might unduly compare me to a Richard Simmons work out video and noticing that I'm gushing blood out of my arm. Apparently a mosquito the size of a VW Bug didn't get the memo that gay men aren't supposed to donate blood.

So on I went, trying to keep my new 7 horsepower walker moving in the right direction when I run over the reminants of a black plastic sheet. The noise was atrocious, but nothing compared to the results - a squirming green and tan snake letting me know how annoyed it was to my ripping up his perfectly nice home. Suddenly, I'm dancing around in a blind panic screaming like a red-headed school girl. Yeah - THAT's an image sure to invoke machismo with the neighbors.

Time to call up a lawn service...

Green Acres Revisited

I'm convinced that I'm channeling Eva Gabor, even though I know that she is alive and well in some corner of the world. But the fact that I, a suburbanite (not quite urban - I never got that sophisticated) gay man, have purchased a home in the country. VERY country. But you'll learn more about that in future postings.

I decided to create Absolute Tchotchke as a way to diary my experiences in home buying and ownership. After 43 years, I have finally given up my renting ways and purchased a home of my very own. And has it EVER been an awakening. Given how many times I've had friends call me naive, I just had to start journaling my "adventures."

Welcome to that corner of my mind where all the dust collects on trivial and inconsequential tidbits...