When passing through Country Club Estates in Troy, it might appear that the owner of the house at 103 Richard Street is a bit eccentric. Or, maybe, the homeowner has an affinity for roosters.

If so, that would make explain the brightly painted, five-foot, tin rooster perched on the rooftop.

Cal Rollins responds to questions like, “Did you know there’s a rooster on your roof?” with, “Well, wait until you see what’s inside.”

Rollins is a collector of things. He does have an affinity for some of the many things he collects. Other things he just finds interesting, and some things he gets by bartering. He brings all the things home – things like a heavy, ornate fountain, a ton of “smoothing irons,” a Mickey Mouse telephone “that works,” Bibendum, the Michelin Man, and clowns of every size, shape and character.

And, of course, the rooster.

“It’s funny about clowns,” Rollins said. “Some people really don’t like clowns. Clowns make some people uncomfortable. Some people are afraid of them. You either like clowns or you don’t.  I like them.

That Rollins likes clowns is evident in the many that are homesteaded around his living room. Some, he probably couldn’t give away; others, including the hand-blown glass clowns, would have collectors emptying their wallets at the thought of owning just one of them.

Hiding behind a shoeshine box is a brightly colored, tin peacock. Perhaps, a companion to the rooster on the roof?

“Oh, the rooster,” Rollins said. “I almost forgot about the rooster.”

As he made his way to the stairs to the roof, Rollins stopped to point out stained glass window panels done by local glass artist Charles Adams.

“I’m glad I got the window panels done before Charles realized what he could get for his work,” Rollins said, with a chuckle. “But, the windows in this part of the house roll out, so, if I ever need to open the widows, all I’ve got to do is get rolling.”

Rollins said he bought the house with the intentions of his mother-in-law, “such a wonderful lady,” living with him and his wife.

But he fell in love with the house that he, not surprisingly, “got for a bargain” and decided to never leave.

The spacious house is perfect for indoor and outdoor living, Rollins said as he opened the side door.

“This is my courtyard. All these large walkway rocks were already here when we bought the house 30 years ago,” he said as he made his way up the steep wooden steps to the rooftop deck.

“It has taken me about a year to get this rooster. Like I said, I’m a collector. I try to get things down closer to my price. It took me a while to get the rooster.”

Rollins “got the rooster” at one of his favorite antique shops, “Not Too Shabby Antiques and Decorating Accents” in Ariton.

“I hadn’t seen a tin rooster this big, and it’s so colorful,” he said. “I liked it. I wanted it  … and I got it.”

Any art object that big and that colorful shouldn’t be hidden under a bushel barrel.

“It needs to be out where other people can see it and enjoy it, too,” Rollins said, giving no indication that having a tin rooster on the roof of his house might be thought rater odd.

“I enjoy collecting unusual things,” he said. “I got a lot of pleasure out of it. The rooster? It’s just up there because that’s where it needs to be. I’ve got a windmill up there, too. Just for the fun of it. Most all of the things I have collected are just for the fun of it.”