This is a house I grew up in. We lived in Sunnyvale, CA. I think my parents paid about $20,000 for this house, maybe less. My best friend who lived next door recently sent this picture to me. I keep looking at it and don't remember it looking anything like this. That window in the front was my mom and dad's bedroom and for some reason I thought that window was a lot larger. The landscaping is obviously a lot different. But this house today sells for close to 1 million. Is that crazy? Would you pay a million for a house that was probably no more than 1000 square feet? It was 3 bedrooms, a living room and a kitchen. I'm sure we didn't have a dining room and I bet there was only one bathroom. Six of us lived in this house until we moved sometime in the late fifties. It really is a shame that housing costs so much today. I know it was a struggle for my parents to purchase a home as it was for us when we purchased our first home. But how do young people today find a liveable home at an affordable price? No wonder there are so many foreclosures today. And, did you know more and more people are retiring in foreign countries? I saw a beautiful condo in Argentina for $30,000. I don't know if I personally would want to leave the U.S. and live in another country, but how tempting is that?
Well, I don't know why I'm writing this post about my ancient history other than it's my birthday today and this picture does bring back a lot of fun memories. My best friend and my Godparents lived next door and I remember all the neighbors were like that movie The Stepford Wives. I remember my mom mowing the lawn in short-shorts and high heels. That's right! I remember watching American Bandstand in our living room with my best friend, my Godmother and my mom, and moving the furniture so we could dance. I remember all the impromptu BBQ's, playing Roller Derby on our driveway and the many orchards that surrounded us allowing us to play some great hide and seek games. I remember my dad and my Godfather making home brew and storing it in the garage and then one day coming home and finding it had all exploded from the heat - what a mess!
And, that's what this picture does for me - brings back a lot of great memories. I hope all the families that lived in it after us had great memories as well. It was a comfortable home and when I watched that show The Wonder Years, I would think of this house and this neighborhood - they were my "wonder years".
My paid about $15k for their home in San Diego. My parents paid that for our first minivan. It kills me how expensive housing is, something that should be a given.
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