Saturday, June 20, 2009

Window Covering

They say that every house has a story to tell, right? This curious little 1920s home always tickles my imagination when I see it. I mean really, now... what's with all the windows? In lieu of any actual historical research, I've come up with some interesting possible explanations:

Maybe the original designer had a brother in the window business...

Perhaps an art collector lost everything in San Francisco's devastating fire and decided to move South to live somewhere with little wall space and great views...

In the roaring 20s, exhibitionism was all the rage -- its influence was felt even in architecture!

No?

Well then, don't get me started on my latest fantasy. The one about a devoted husband and the wife with a brain tumor causing gradual blindness. "Just look at all the windows I've given you, darling!" He might have said, "Now you'll never be without light!"

(It's easy to get carried away by the romance of South Pasadena's older homes.)

23 comments:

Judy Williams said...

Maybe the wife had severe claustrophobia and hated the idea of more than a few inches of wall. I think all of those windows are just charming. I would imagine they have stock in Windex by now. HAHA

This is crisp and tack sharp. I love all of the angles too. Happy Saturday. Missing you guys.

xoxoxo

Mister Earl said...

Very cool shot. I guess that house gets good cross ventilation!

dbdubya said...

It must be cold during the winter with all those windows, especially on the right side of the house. The original fireplace is on the left and there's a second chimney for another fireplace.

I think the second chimney is for a fireplace added to the upstairs room on that side of the house where the windows are covered and one is boarded up. I'm guessing that's where they locked up Grannie when her dementia got out of control and she started chasing people with knives.

Any other ideas?

Laurie Allee said...

DB, you made me spit my coffee with that last comment. That's hilarious! See? This house inspires the novelist in everyone...

Hilda said...

Hee, that's almost like our house. The windows, I mean, not the design. Makes it tough to position bookshelves, I can tell you that!

San Diego Farmgirl said...

Farmgirl says the original owners were avid indoor gardeners. I can imagine those windows filled with hanging plants.

Mister Earl said...

They were trying to get the bats out of their belfry.

I wonder how many knife-wielding grannies there are in South Pas? Not all of them are demented. Some of them know exactly what they're doing. Crossing my legs as I type...

WV: Nulpers. "Now grandma, put those nulpers down right now!"

TheChieftess said...

Okay, okay...I have to throw in a more practical angle...anyone ever heard of air conditioning in the 1920's...sunny Southern California...(at least just about all the time except this month!!!) hot summer days...a little cross ventilation would render this house quite the comfortable home in those days...

Shanna said...

They liked looking at the sky!!! Like I do!!

Paula said...

Maybe an artist who wanted the light? Cross ventilation also comes to mind.

Laurie Allee said...

I knew you guys would play along! I do like the idea of cross breezes here... but I've yet to see a single window open in all the times I've driven past. Hmmmmm...

Thanks for commenting, everyone. Until tomorrow!

Eki said...

I like how you created different scenarios to explain the possibilities of how this house had come to have so many windows.
:)

it's the story teller in you, i suppose.

I like a house with a lot of windows like this, btw.

Wayne said...

It would have been a 'brother-in-law' in the window business.

TheChieftess said...

As to the question about why the windows aren't open these days... They put in air conditioning and prefer that stale, cold air to fresh South Pasadena breezes!!!

TheChieftess said...

Well...I just took a look at the close up version of the photo...I have to say...don't think they have air conditioning...lot's of stale air...and I think DB's knife wielding granny is just about right!!! When I first saw this picture, I looked at the bones of it...I didn't see how much it is rundown...while I do believe the original reason for all those windows was cross ventilation...I think maybe now someone's definitely trying to hide something in that upstairs wing...maybe a meth lab?!!! Maybe that knife wielding granny!!!!

Anonymous said...

I know the story to this house as well as the people who live there. It's very interesting

Mister Earl said...

Tell us PA. And where is it?

TheChieftess said...

Soooo, PA...do tell...what's the real story????

Laurie Allee said...

PA, you tease. I'm itching to know the story, too!

Double "D" said...

It would be interesting to see what's buried in the back yard.

Araxi said...

This is really the strangest little house. I live close by and walk by it all the time and once saw pigeons coming out of the window. Ive always wondered about who lives there. There was also an old ice cream truck in the back yard the last time I passed by.

A South Pasadenan too said...

I walk by this house too, and myh friend and I have decided that first of all, it's haunted. And, along the side of the house in a planter are a bunch of small buckets full of concrete. At least 30 or so. We believe that there are body parts encased in each one. We then looked at an aerial view of the house on Zillow, and the back yard is a veritable auto grave yard.

Anyway, the house is quite run down with a lot of broken windows, and no evidence that anyone lives there. It's a beauty though, and in a great location. I hope one day someone buys this grand lady and brings her back to her former glory.

Anonymous said...

That's really awesome pics...Nice to see this..

This is pretty interesting...

Thanks for sharing..
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