My house is perfect. Sandwiched between two other suburban houses, with its white porch spindles, and otherwise baby blue exterior, it’s like god plucked it straight out of a Pottery Barn catalog. You walk in the door and it smells like lavender and freshly burned sage, never food though. My family doesn’t cook. No one has any talent in that regard. Besides, cooking makes messes. If we did attempt to cook, the house would then smell like scorched grilled cheeses and lackluster tomato soup, but instead you get punched in the nose with the latest of my mom’s Yankee Candle purchases.
Next, you notice how the shoes are arranged next to the door like the school girls in the Madeline’s children’s books: “in two straight lines.” The kitchen nook has wooden floors, with a small wooden table resting on top of them. There’s always placemats or a centerpiece tastefully reflecting on the next holiday to come.
Moving out of the kitchen nook and into the kitchen, the continued wooden paneling stands out the most. Even the fridge has an ornately carved wooden inlay. Not insight from the entrance is the dishwasher, the only non-wooden appliance. The kitchen hasn’t changed as it rarely gets used. Occasionally, rugs adorn the cold wood floor, but generally not, as they are harder to clean.
The next room to tackle is the living room. There’s one long couch that wraps around the corner of the room. This room is carpeted, but you can bet it’s spotless, as my dad got a steam cleaner for Christmas. My dog’s toys are all neatly arranged in baskets that match the decor and are neatly tucked away under the coffee table. All the gaming and speaker system wires are neatly hidden in the walls with not one out of place.
As with all the other rooms in the house, the bedrooms are no different. My mother’s closet is color coded. My little brother used a label maker to expertly organize all of his Legos. My older brother only has a bed and a computer in his room. They look like all the other rooms in my house, untouched and hardly occupied. Perfect.