My babysitter’s mom had velvet wallpaper, red and black wrought iron dining room chairs, and under the dining room table was an oval red shag area rug with long fringe. I remember this because they panicked whenever it was almost time for their mother to come home. They swept the fringe to perfection and kept the dog away from it because the front door was by the dining room table, and their mother insisted the fringe had to be perfect.

Oh, and a giant painting (or print of a painting) of Jesus with the palms showing, and Jesus tall glass candles in the dining room. No statues allowed per their religion because that could be misunderstood as praying to a false god or something (we had a giant statue of a giraffe in our house that I used to sit on—I don’t think they ever saw it though).

Man, that was one strange house. I was afraid of their basement.