Marcie Glanzer Column
Wednesday, September 14, 2005
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You may have seen the TV program called "This Old House" with Bob Villa and admired all the old woodwork, hardwood floors, large rooms and the history behind the house. Bob makes it look like a dream come true to live in structure built in the good old days when workmanship meant something. And there is truth to that. We live in a farmhouse, part of which was built in the 1800's, the new addition being added on in 1917. It has withstood many storms, even a tornado or two and has come through virtually unscathed, a testament to the craftmanship back then. However, even well built structures begin to show their age after a certain amount of time, and "this old house" is no exception. For the past year or so, I have been distressed over my kitchen sink...the drain has been clogged so badly that water would sit for hours before it would slowly seep out, which is totally gross as it stinks and leaves crud in the sink. Everyday, we would plunge until we could get it to start moving, then do it all over again the next day. Finally, the day came when even plunging did no good. It was time for action. My husband, who can fix about anything, went out to get a saw, some pipe and various plumbing tools and headed to the basement. I had to go along which was creepy since our basement is like a cave complete with spiderwebs, mice droppings, dirt floor, and damp crud all over. He had to crawl on his stomach into a small crawlspace and cut the pipe leading down from the kitchen drain. I pulled about 8 feet of lead pipe (yes, I'm sure it was poisonous all these years) out and looked into the end of it. No wonder the drain was plugged! There was about a pencil lead sized hole for water to go through...the sediment and all had hardened into a cement-like substance. A new pipe was put on and "VIOLA"!!! I had a drain that water swooshed through like a vacuum! I was almost giddy with delight!!!
One problem solved, 99 to go! The foundation on the north side of the house has disintegrated and the house tilts obviously in that direction. One day we may find ourselves in the basement, but that's an expensive thing to fix. Then there are the windows...they are old and let in wind that causes the curtains to billow out. In the winter we put plastic on all of them which helps, but isn't a real fix. On to the insulation. There isn't any. I guess people didn't use it back in the olden days. We did tear a wall out of our south porch to add some insulation a few years back and found newspapers stuffed in between the studs. The papers were brittle and didn't help much, but they were interesting to read. Now how about the roof? We had a good rain along with strong winds yesterday and had quite the flood inside the house. Wherever a gable is located, that's where the water ran in...it doesn't smell so good either, after coming through plaster and lathe. Lets see...oh yes, the septic tank is shot...another expensive fix that we aren't prepared to sink money into. And, oh yes! My latest complaint...insects! We have had an infestation of what I call wire worms, centipedish type worms that are kind of hard and skinny. They show up out of nowhere, and are all over the place. Also beetle type bugs with a hard shell on their backs. The worst, though, are the spiders. All kinds, like daddy long legs, and some type with long sharp looking legs that are probably harmless, but look really disgusting. I awoke a couple of nights ago when I felt something crawling on my arm. I gasped and flicked it away, and it landed on my face. I jumped out of bed, hopping around and swatting all over myself, then turned on the light and saw a spider scampering down the sheets. I beat that sucker with a pair of shorts until it was just a blob of brown legs, but felt crawly things on me the rest of the night.
Despite all the shortcomings of our home, I still enjoy it. There is alot of history here as my husband's grandparents lived here and raised his dad and 2 brothers here. After they passed away, my in-laws lived here and raised my husband and his sister, and our kids are the 4th generation to have been brought up in this house. There is an elderly lady who lived here as a young girl and she filled me in on the history of the house and told how her parents added on in 1917, but her mother didn't get to enjoy it as she got scarlet fever along with a daughter. They were nursed in the bedroom that Dick and I sleep in, and the rest of the family was sent out to sleep in a garage. Both women died as a result of their illness, and another baby brother died when he fell into a water barrel and drowned. I have never been bothered by ghosts, but did manage to scare Ryan by telling him that the bodies were buried in the basement. He later informed me of many a sleepless night imagining their spirits coming to get him... How was I to know he'd believe me?
So, Bob Villa...you think you've had some challenges on your TV show? I am inviting you to brave the spiders, worms, ghosts and crumbling foundation to come visit "this old house"...let's see what you're really made of!