When I was in Ithaca I took a quick drive around Taber Street to check Nancy's parking lot to see if maybe she were grooming a Sunday dog. I came to an immediate halt when I saw the For Sale sign in front of this old place.
Back in the 80s I picked up a hit-by-car toy poodle way down on Elmira Road by the car wash, with tags that gave this address. I was met by an elderly gentleman who insisted his dog was in his fenced yard. He went out into the yard calling and calling while I stood there in tears, because his dog was in my van, dead. He finally came out to look, and he totally broke down. When he asked for me to take her because he could not bury her, I gave him the poodle's collar, said I was sorry, and drove away. That old gentleman's grief has always haunted me.
I stopped and walked around the house. What had, back then, been a front porch was now a glassed in extension. The lot was fairly large (there was a second house there back when I visited in the 80s) with a shed just like the one I used to have for a cat facility in West Danby. The yard sloped down to one of the inlet channels, and the water was dark and quiet, shaded by trees. It was a suitable spot for a dock, if legal. It was clearly in the flood zone, but the house itself was up on a four foot high foundation. There was more than enough room for another building for the cats.
I began wondering what it would be like to sell the farm, invest in this little place, and be able to plop a kayak in the inlet anytime I wanted, bike to stores, visit friends for lunch, take care of the ferals without a two hour time-investment, etc.
After wandering around, checking the foundation, and peeking in the windows, I called the Realtor. Sadly, the house is part of a four parcel bundle in the seven digit range.
4. 812-814 Taber Street 1,058 sq. ft. This white stucco two story 3 bedroom, 2 bath home is on a double lot with wonderful green space ideal for outdoor meetings. It also has waterfront access. It would be possible to install a dock on this parcel. The house is cleaned out and could be leased as office space for a variety of small businesses. Future development possibilities when combined with adjacent lots.
There is another matching house around the corner for $80,000, but while it looks out over the inlet, it doesn't have water access right on the property, which is all of the charm of the other house. It is a cute house, but I'm not in the market for a cute house. I'm in the market for a lifestyle.
What a pity. Nonetheless, it's always fun to dream.
But then I came home and, sitting on the porch, listened to the birds off in the woods, and was actually quite glad the house was not available. I won't be able to stay here forever by myself, but I can enjoy it for a long while.
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