Description

The old farmhouse did have indoor plumbing. But even way out there, on the outskirts of the Mojave Desert, some days saw a lot of visitors tracking sandy grit into the house to stress our family-size septic system.

So: the outhouse. A couple of friends put it up in an afternoon.

They used sun-bleached lumber from fallen structures and scraps of metal that had been sticking out of drifting banks of sand since the old farm went under.

If you have known outhouses, know that ours was a deluxe model. With the help of a garden hose, it had a regulation flush toilet and mini-sink. Its generous, high windows were screened against intruders. Standing in there, the view was unmatched by any outhouse we’ve known (except ones on certain mesas in the remote Southwest).

Purchaser note: the photographer manipulated this image extensively and creatively. As innocent as it might appear at first glance, colors have been adjusted, some edges made so crisp they can almost cut, and much more. These choices helped make the original photograph a more accurate emotional impression of that sun-blasted, wind-whipped desert landscape. All such creative decisions in no way are to be considered defects; they are as intentional and artistically subjective as poetry.