My Housing Schizophrenia, the Remarkable Janzen Family, and Ghosts from the Past

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I’ve never felt comfortable with an excess of things in my own environment and excess, to me, is having more than two of anything. I have a monk-like tendency to pare things down to the bare essentials and a few comforts, which usually leaves my living spaces looking like temporary quarters rather than a home. I think I may be a modernist at heart, but with none of the design skills that go into making spare look plentiful. The odd thing is that I love the excess of other people’s homes. When I see walls covered with photos, cupboards filled with dishes, and books lined neatly in shelves, I feel tender. Eight bottles of shampoo on the bath ledge and overflowing closets make me feel weirdly sentimental — as long as they’re not mine. Somehow, things that feel like disorder in my own spaces feels inviting in others. It’s a form of housing schizophrenia that makes this trip, where I spend a lot of time in other people’s homes, even more interesting.

Michael and Julia Janzen

My hosts so far have all been amazing people, who have welcomed me into their homes (and Inns) and made me feel like part of the family. Michael and Julia Janzen, who recently hosted me in Fair Oaks were no exception — but there was a twist. While the Janzen’s present home is a nice three bedroom house in the suburbs, Michael has been an active proponent of the “tiny house movement” that has been building momentum across the United States for a few years. Tiny house enthusiasts have varied reasons for their love of miniature houses, and even different takes on what constitutes “tiny”, but for Michael the major points are affordability, portability, self-sufficiency, and environmental awareness.  The tiny house (click on link to see pics) he is building in the backyard of his in-law’s home is being made completely from free scrap materials he has collected. It sits on a trailer, which means it can be moved from place to place. Some tiny house builders see their creations as replacing a traditional camper, or as potential vacation homes.

Michael’s goal of building a tiny house that cost nothing but labor has been a slow but gratifying process for him. Since he has a family and a day job, the time he can spend on the project is limited, but the whole family, including Julia’s parents, has gotten behind his efforts. Even his three year-old daughter, Katie, is excited by her dad’s project. She told me all about the tiny house, and the lizards that sometimes came inside to get out of the rain. . . and then she told me about rocks, flowers, pumpkins, Grammy and Pop’s farm, and how my car looked like Lightning McQueen (from the Disney Pixar movie Cars).

Katie & The "McQueen" Camaro

The kid’s got a pretty sharp eye. According to Wikipedia, Lightning McQueen was influenced by the Chevy Corvette. My Camaro would like to think she has several things in common with the Corvette, including unbeatable style. Here is Lola, trying to follow a Corvette home.

Lola Spies a Corvette

I loved my stay at the Janzen’s “big house”. One of the reasons, I told Julia, was that it seems to say, “this child was very much wanted.”  Their home is filled with an abundance of love and warmth. Toys, books, and photographs are everywhere. Even as Katie runs from room to room with two Havanese dogs on her trail, there is a gentle calmness behind the chaos. After a long struggle with infertility treatments, the Janzens’ adopted Katie as an infant. They are remarkable parents, who are nurturing a daughter who is bright, affectionate, and curious. They hope to adopt another child in the near future, and I hope they are successful. They’re the kind of parents I wish I had while I was growing up.

Speaking of growing up, I am now in Reno. It feels strange and somewhat disconcerting to be in the birthplace of my angst and housing schizophrenia. I’ve been revisiting some of the neighborhoods I lived in, which stirs up a lot of feelings, old and new. The difference now isn’t just that I’m older, but that my perspective and thoughts have changed. There’s a lot of joy in my life now, including this adventure, and there are many people I feel encouraged and inspired by, so I don’t think the ghosts of the past will have quite the same effect they did during my last visit several years ago. . .but we’ll see. I’ll be here until Saturday morning.