This Google Earth image was taken in June of this year, the month before I moved in. When I called the trash company for service, the representative had to find my GPS coordinates. I said about half way down my road, on the east side, a double wide. "With the red roof?" "The next one south!" Mr. Next Door has the only red roof in the park.
In June, my unit was brand new, surrounded by mud and ruts, no drive yet. You can see my front and back decks. The next unit after me has a tenant now; lovely lady. She finished the deal with the lone handyman to get dirt in between our units and get it ready for grass. I have a shed back there, now, and I believe her clincher was "She's going to fall back there, and won't you be in trouble!"
All those brown rectangles are sites prepared for a trailer "to drop." Management seems to drop one or two a week. Those two rectangles behind me have units in them, being prepped for occupation. The rectangle 4th down from the red roof has two rows of concrete plugs in the ground; each as big around as a 55 gallon steel drum, and pretty deep. The unit rests on them. You know I just have to know everything.
Years ago I worked for Forest City Enterprises in Cleveland, and they built high rise apartments from prefabricated units that were built in Akron and taken by train to their location. When they left the old car barn in Akron, where they were made, the sinks were installed, the closet rods in place, lighting--just the toilet was secured in a closet so it would not break in transit.
I realized that's exactly the situation here. Manufactured homes. These are not trailers, but they are mobile homes. I need to stop saying "the trailer park," and say "the mobile home park." Or not.
A unit going in behind me. The yellow unit beside it is in one of the two rectangles behind me. This one is in place but not dropped. It's still on wheels.
Now the wheels are off, on the left, and the axels are on the right. Workers will get underneath and get the hook ups situated, then drop the unit and install the white skirting. I'd love to be here when they "drop" it.
Don't mourn, organize!
You can call the House Oversight Committee and add your voice to the call for a bi-partisan review of Donald Trump's financial records and potential conflicts of interest. The phone numbers are: 202-225-5074 or 202-225-5051. They are counting every phone call! If you can't get through, call the White House switchboard: 202-224-3121.
I used to be known in the neighborhood for my red front door. It was a flimsy door, though, and the first Christmas I had Willy Dunne Wooters he bought me a steel front door and a security storm door. He also paid to have them installed. It was one of the best gifts I've ever received, almost as good as the Pretty Peaches doll and baby buggy that I got for Christmas when I was six (I think I was six). Hello to the very large cat at the top of the page and hello to your new home. Is Emily okay with her mom? How is Laura?
ReplyDeleteLove,
Janie
I forgot to say that I don't understand how Donald Trump's businesses can be in a blind trust when he's turning them over to his children.
DeleteLaura is thriving. Emily will have to be OK; that is the choice she made. Emily and her mother are cut from the same cloth; I foresee a lot of head butting.
DeleteAdd your two cents; call the House Oversight Committee.
DeleteWe lived in a mobile home for the first ten years of our marriage. It was comfortable and cozy. We were happy there. It is interesting how they are set up and disassembled.
ReplyDeleteWe moved into a mobile home (and it was a move up) when I was fifteen. It was a new kind at that time; part of it was expandable once it was placed on a lot. The expandable part was called a tip out and it meant we had a very large living room and an extra bedroom. A double wide would be excellent. I always liked ours; as I say, it was an improvement on where we had lived, and everything was brand new, complete with colour coordinated furnishings. My parents worked hard to provide us with that home. I'm glad you need to know everything because that means we get to know everything, too.
ReplyDeleteThat was interesing about the trash guy needing your GPS coordinates. Looks like a lot of growth happening there. I think it would be a nice place to live in a mobile home park.
ReplyDeleteBetty
I am in awe at your need to know everything. My husband is like that and that curiosity makes him an interesting person to be around. That can be said about you also.
ReplyDeleteI am glad to hear that Laura is thriving and sad to hear that all might not be good for Emily.
I will be calling that # tomorrow. I am thinking of going to Washington in January, but that depends on health issues. If I can not do that, I will march with my sisters in Philadelphia.
DeleteI know I cannot march anywhere, or even walk a block. But, I have a friend in the same situation, and it came to us: sponsor a young woman. Most of the buses seem free, but it's still twenty four hours and several meals.
DeleteWhat a fantastic idea, Joanne.
DeleteI love your urge to know. And do.
ReplyDeleteGood luck.
I'm not 100% sure, but I think those are called prefabricated kit homes out here. There are other Kit homes where the components are cut to size and put together onsite. The premade ones seem a lot like the demountable school rooms that were brought to schools as temporary extra classrooms and are still there 60 years later.
ReplyDeleteI had to chuckle when I read your comment about needing to remember these were mobile homes and not trailers. Years ago my mother moved from her Ohio apt. to be nearer to me who was living in Calif. We found a lovely large single "mobile home" 2 bedroom, full bath, etc. in a Sr. Mobile Home Park she enjoued the rest of her time there. She would laugh about residents admonishing her these singles, doubles, etc. were not trailers, but mobile homes!
ReplyDeleteThanks for the info on House Oversight Committee phone numbers. I'll be sharing those with everyone I know. Sure need to check on DTs financial conflicts.
Looking at the picture of the rows of homes I was reminded of tire tracks.
ReplyDeleteWe lived in a mobile home when I was five when the ladies in the house we were buying delayed things. We were happy there and could have our dogs with us.
ReplyDeleteHari OM
ReplyDeleteAs one who spent her first six years in an actual caravan ("Trailer"), albeit a large one, I can vouch for it being not so bad a life. Also, as River says, in OZ these are called Kit Homes. I even looked at a couple here when looking to settle back in Scotland - but they were not in places convenient to requirement. Recently, some have come up for sale nearby... bit outta my range and not at all sure about all that wood... but interesting nonetheless!
I almost wish I was in the US to be able to make those calls... YAM xx
I wouldn't want such close neighbors myself
ReplyDeleteI suppose it could be claustrophobic. They are arranged back door to neighboring front door. The most interaction I have with neighbors is all the children going by, and I enjoy that. They say "Hi, Gramma."
DeleteA 'herring-bone' layout on your estate. Thanks for the White House number. I may give Trump a late-night call in January if they haven't changed it by then.
ReplyDeleteIt's been that number since Nixon got a piece of my mind for bombing Cambodia. And in return, I had my taxes audited. This is deja vu trumped.
DeleteAudited? Yikes, Joanne! Talk about intimidation.
Deleteback when we were looking for a house and land out in the country, and these were out in the country not just outside the town limits, the only things we found that we could afford were manufactured homes but I did not want to live in one...flimsy and plastic. I imagine your home is much nicer than the ones we looked at. so we ended up not really out in the country but outside town in a rural community with neighbors and everything. but we like our 1950s+ house with it's many big windows and deep eaves and wood floors.
ReplyDeleteI am impressed with the construction and the insulation. It's all electric, and my electric bill all the summer months when the air ran constantly was $60 a month!
Deleteit is amazing how far the industry has come with manufactured homes. My daughter's mother-in-law lives in an "over-55" manufactured home community in Central Florida. It is really nice, and the sense of community puts my neighborhood to shame.
Delete"Sense of community" is the part that dumbfounded me.
DeleteWe used to live in a subdivision (in a "stick built house"), where all the newer homes were brought in in pieces and assembled on site. My nephew loved to come visit while a new house was arriving. He would be entertained for days with the process. My friends up the road bought a double wide. Unfortunately the two halves didn't meet perfectly along the seam. After months of screaming at the company with no results, my husband finally went up and fixed it so the snow wouldn't come in. What a flippin' nightmare!
ReplyDeleteOnly thing wrong is where is the room fir a garden, same here .
ReplyDeleteMerle......
Ive always had a real soft spot for mobile homes, cabins or whatever you call places with no foundations that can just arrive (and leave, I guess). Perhaps it says something about my personality :) Are you tweeting your thing about the House Oversight Committee? not that it is relevant to us in Britain but I hope people in the US are retweeting as well as telling their friends.
ReplyDeleteYeah the wheels are just temporary. Most mobile homes are not very mobile. thanks for sharing all these details
ReplyDeleteLooks like a nice settlement to call home!
ReplyDeleteWhat a nice community! What is difficult in a new home is finding the right spot for belongings. We tossed and gave away so many knick knacks before we moved, so it is much easier. Lovely place to live, Joanne!
ReplyDeleteWe gave away more than I care to thing about after we moved in, and I still have a shopping bag (smallish) of things I won't part with, but have no home.
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