B has given her blessing for me to take over for a bit so we’ll be spending some time comparing Newcastle to Michigan where I live now. B will be back to regular posting on Monday 9 August!
Today we’re comparing where exactly I live; my house!
In Newcastle, I lived in an awesome little flat in Sandyford:
And in Michigan I live in a house on 5 acres of land:
Quite the difference, eh?!
Hi Cassandra, Was your flat on Brandon grove in Sandyford as i used to live there and it looks familiar, Lovely place in Michigan by the way.
Cassandra, yes I sort of pictured a ‘clapboard’ if that is what you call it. And that big chimney, open fire or wood burner? Michigan gets cold winters you will need heat. Love the pink flowers and wow five whole acres.
Lovely.
Nice pictures….fun to compare. Your home in Michigan is on a farm? Love that counrty livin’ but also love city life of Newcastle. I’m sure you love both places for different reasons…thank you for sharing your home town with us.
Stephen, yes indeed, I did live on Brandon Grove! It was quite a lovely street.
Mrs K, that big ol chimney is sadly no longer in service. It has been altered to be the exhaust of our heater that resides in the basement. It used to be hooked up to a giant cast-iron wood stove that now resides in the attic. There’s also another chimney on the back that served as exhaust from another heater in the kitchen area.
Ash, the homestead used to be a diary farm back in the day, the early 1900’s, 1920-30’s. My grandmother grew up here. I think they got rid of most of the cows and other animals back in the 70’s when my great-grandfather passed away. It is no longer a working farm, but we rent the farmland surrounding us out to a local farmer who raises crops to support his, coincidentally, dairy farm! There are currently oats in the 78 acres around us. I do have a bit of a veg garden that will feature this week though!
Oh, and Mrs K– those heaters used to serve the house by a series of pipes that went from room to room. When we renovated when we moved in (an are still updating here and there, as you can see by the door and various other things on the porch), those unused pipes were removed. There is currently no heat whatsoever upstairs where I live and work! I have plenty of blankets though, and a pup to snuggle up to. I also have a small space heater for those really cold nights. It’s not too bad in the end actually. And this spring we re-insulated and weather-proofed with really thick insulation so it should be quite a bit warmer! Also, the house was built in 1890, which isn’t very old by England’s standards, but is quite old for the area here. The original owners were the namesake of our street name!
Listening to you describe your upstairs living quarters reminded me of my parents older home on Whickham View which had no insulation at all…it was absolutely freezing except for the tiny sitting room which had a small coal heated firepace (back in the 70’s) to heat the entire flat…ice covered the bathroom mirrors every winter morning….it was so hard to get out of bed for school on those days.
Looking forward to seeing your veg garden..how are your tomatoes coming along?
Great shots Cassandra, and wow, I love your home in Mich! It looks amazing. I know the area where you lived in Sandyford, and it looks similar to my street in Hebburn.