This is an exterior shot of my former residence in Woodbridge, New Jersey. Built in the nineteenth century by one of the two Valentine brothers, it is an incredible house.
I took these photographs one fall after raking the lawn with my dad. Originally, I intended to email these shots to my brother, reminding him of the many autumns we spent together raking.
A rear shot of the house. The bird perched on the roof to the left is Horus, a name my dad picked that I found appropriate.
The rear yard. The grass is looking a little yellow, the rose garden is barren, this is definately late fall.
Originally the woman pouring water was the top of the fountain immediately behind her. Now the fountain is filled with flowers instead.
The carriage house at the rear of the lot has become a garage for horseless wagons in this day and age. Originally slaves lived in the upper levels of the carriage house.
This shot was taken from the rear porch. Immediately off camera to the left is a large stone bowl filled with flowers, which once held water for the horses.
Here's where I spent a majority of my waking hours in high school. If I was not out at school, doing homework, or visiting friends, I was here in front of the computer.
Mmmm. This shot puzzles me. For some reason I remember my dad asking me to take it. I'll spare you from the rest of the dark pointless shots.
The small television sitting on the right side of the shelving unit brings back many fond memories. Ages ago, it sat in the garden room, where I would spent a decent portion of my visits. Later, it ended up here, where my cousin Tony and I would often sneak off during family gatherings and watch television until the male adults found it and watched football hiding with us.
My dad's desk.
My dad had a thing for old maps of various regions, some of which were quite facinating. He has a collection of old geography texts, the oldest have 'unknown' areas for some sections of the world.
I have a weakness for big black comfy business chairs. Ask my former english teacher, Mr.Martin. Ask my former quadmate Aaron. Ask any of my current co-workers at Drew. Just looking at this chair, I have to wipe drool from the keyboard.
One wall had old maps, this wall was more naval in theme.

 

These next few shots I took to show my roommates the chair that I planned on bringing to our triple that my mother had left me. I never did get the chair up to Drew, and it remains in Woodbridge to this day.
But what a chair! Comfortable, large, and fun. You could fit a couple of healthy adults on it, as long as they were friendly. You could sleep on it, even if you were a big goon like me.
Any child of the 80s or 90s will recognize what lurks below the television, hiding behind the chair's foot rest. A good old Nintendo Entertainment System! Woohoo! That's a NES Advantage to the right, the best controller ever made.
This is the garden room, after its redecoration. It was a fairly simple room, with the small television shown above, couches, and plants. Now it is much more decorative, with matching chairs, a couch, and a canary. This room has mixed memories for me. On one hand, it was where a good deal of the unpleasant conversations of my teenage years took place. On the other hand, I enjoyed many quiet nights reading here or having quiet talks with people out of earshot of my parents.
My stepmother, Gloria, in the kitchen.
Here's a night shot of the house in the snow. Looking at this photo, I can understand why my best friend in grade school, John, called this house the 'Psycho House'.
My cousins Tony and Robby, on my bed, playing with my laptop.
Here's my answer to most of the questions that inevitably rise from the viewing of this page.    

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