They live in one of the most ensouled homes I've ever been in.

Things I'd normally loathe are made charming. House was built in 1912 and much of it shows. Part of why it was so cheap was cuz they've had to repair and replace quite a bit themselves off online tutorials, introducing some of their aesthetic tastes and traditional patterns to the ceilings and so on. None of the floors are even and you can see the tape on some ceilings. My lil bro talked shop with them cuz he's been helping maintain our church some days.

On top of that are all the strange cultural crossovers you could want, cuz they're fucked up in the same ways as us. Ichthys carved on the door by strings of evil eyes. Buddhist figurines by westernized angels. Small Catholic-looking stained glass window by Dragon Ball Z slippers. American flag LED lights outside, ornate Turkish lamps inside. Ancient ass paintings of Ottoman markets and portraits of their ancestors hanging above gamer chairs. Bible verses on the mirror, closets full of traditional Indian patterned shirts and homeopathic medicine. Shaped Arabic calligraphy and an I ♡ Kosovo sticker on the fridge.

And on top of that, two of them learned classical painting. Everywhere you look there's an animal on the wall, particularly local bears, like they're some sorta fucking 19th century colonial expedition. This place could work as the fictional abode of some eccentric professor.

We slept in their little girls' room. Above my bed was a cartoon giraffe by the words "Born to be cute". Gigantic train horn close by in the middle of the night. Probably part of why this place was so cheap. They say you get used to it.