Last night, I was over at our neighbor's helping her look over her re-model/home addition plans, and noticed that the location of a door they had that connected their home to the garage would swing in and broadside any car parked there. I pointed this out (in case they ever wanted to sell their home) and I was informed that it didn’t matter because in California no one parks his or her car in the garage, and we are strange for doing so or even thinking that way! “Only mechanics need a garage in California”, she went on to say, almost haughtily. (This coming from someone who almost parks on the grass because birds hang out in the tree above their driveway and dirty her car.)
Now don’t get me wrong, I like our neighbors, but here’s my problem; I don’t believe we’re freaks for parking our cars in the garage, and was shocked she (and the rest of her group) felt otherwise. Granted, Tim and I snuggle two cars into a small “California sized” two-car garage—but they fit, and it prevents us from stacking up the garage with a bunch of useless crap and clutter. I know most of our clients have at least a 2 car garage built, (if not more) and they actually use them for cars, so perhaps only the “freaks” in California who like their cars use their garages.
The other thing that bugs me is that since almost everything you can think of is stored in their garage, our neighbor believes they have WAY too much closet space, and “Why would a house be built with space above the closets that you don’t use?” I’m thinking… "Um, because people park in the garage and thus need storage space inside the house?!?" I realize in comparison our closets are packed full of clothes and storage items. I would love to have an attic or place to store holiday linens, paperwork, rotate seasonal clothing, etc, but that doesn’t mean we’re going to displace two cars to do so!
The whole thing rather perturbed me and got me thinking about the “California Culture’’ of our neighborhood. Many people subscribe to the “pack your garage full” philosophy. Although some do manage to cram their stuff to either side and park at least one car in the middle. If there still isn’t room for their cars, they seem not to have a problem storing a car or two on their front lawns. (Unfortunately, the cars on lawns are usually older, and tend to become permanent lawn ornaments.)
Now, I realize that other areas also have people that do not take care of their yards or have their own lawn car lot, but it's usually the exception not the norm. Today, when I looked around the place we call home, there are so many people on our block that haven’t painted their homes in eons, that allow their yards grow long and then turn brown in the summer from lack of water. Many of their hedges and trees are overgrown from not cutting them. (But at least they block the cars parked on the lawns.) The not taking care of your lawn is comedic, because it’s usually the homeowners that are the worst offenders. Most of the renters in our neighborhood take care of the places they rent. (Or their landlords make arrangements to take care of things.) And I know in other (dare I say, more up-scale) towns, people still take pride in their yards, and it’s actually pleasant to meander through the streets past their well manicured yards and admire the colors of the flowers.
But back to my pet peeve of the day…not using your garage. I can understand if a person is renting (or someone who had to purchase a small place that they could afford) they may not have enough space for everything, but to re-model and still not use your 2-car garage for parking?!? As a former mid-westerner this drives me NUTS!!!! Last I checked, most people are not freaks when they say a garage is for vehicles, and in most places in the country people actually use their garages to park their vehicles in. Not to mention take pride in their lawns…
Its times like these I am tempted to move somewhere saner!
