InsidetheeyeofSouthMontrose, justeastofMontroseAveitself, was801Richmond.
Ithadrecentlyhousedasmallart gallery.
Beforethat,abarbershop.
Objectively,outsideandin,the placewasadump.
Lookingatitfromacrossthe streetmonthsafterwe'dmoved out,itfeltlikethetypeofplacea murderermightlive.
Evenso,rightbetweenKate'swork andmyschool,acrossfromthe city'sbestbeerstoreandnexttoa TexMexinstitution,itwasalso perfect.
Ithadhighceilingsononelevel withlotsofspace,includinga giantpavedparkinglotofa backyardunderahuge(if rotting)treeforshade.
Plus,withanelevatedfront porchfromwhichtositbehind thebarsandwatchthetrafficroll byatanyhour,itneverflooded.
Butthekitchendidn'thavethe capacitytocook.
"Youguyswanttolivehere?"our landlordasked,astonished. Aportablecooktop,agas outdoorgrillandtwopropane tankslater,that'sexactlywhatwe didforthethreeyearsfromJune 2019on.
Withbarsonthewindowsand asecurityfloodlightinthe alley,wecalleditthe compound.
Katedidherresearchinanear windowlesscaveattheback.
Ishotportraitsupfrontand workedinanofficetowards themiddle.
Afewmonthsin,wehelda showofourfriendJacinta's sculpturesinthefrontgallery space.
Thenwhenthepandemichit, likemanypeople's,ourworld becamemuchsmaller.
Iwentfordailywalksoverthe bridgecrossingtheriverofcars onthehighway. Asidefromshootingtheshit withBrandon,whoownedthe beerstoreacrossthestreet,I sawalmostnooneoutsideof Kateforaboutayear.
WesetupStudioCinthefront guestroomforKatetoteach remotelytwiceaweek. Istartedsmokingmeatinthe backyardtohelptakemymind offthings.
Thatfirstsummer,welost Shyra,our20-year-old,mostbeautiful-cat-in-the-world.
Notlongafterthat,we unintentionallygainedfivered kitties. Borninourbackyardalley,we trappedthem,hopingtohave themfixedbeforeadoption.
Nottryingveryhardtofindnew owners,wefailedandkeptthem.
Soonafter,weallwentthrough thegreatpoweroutageof2021, spendingnearly20hourswithout heatinsub-zerocelsius temperatures.
Thecoldsnapkilledthefive-foot hightropicalplantI'dboughtto livenupthecrackingconcrete padthatwasthebaseofour home'sstairs.
Ridingoutthepandemicina newcityrightafterstartinga newjobandgradschoolwas oftendifficult.
Thatsaid,there'snohouseI'd ratherhavedoneitin.