Chris finished taking down most of the chimney (it can't all be removed until we deal with the grading and the siding). The house looks much better without it. It is a significant change. Unlike most of the house, I do remember that chimney being built in the fifties. Or more exactly, I remember the construction of the new room and fireplace to which it was attached.
Before it was built, I have vague memories of a dark earthen space--was it a long ago root cellar? My parents had it transformed into a mahogany paneled room, with a big Zenith television and an even bigger picture window in which we spent most of our indoor time.
The years have not been kind to that project. Poor planning, poor drainage and poor construction created a mess of a room. Chimney removal is the first step in its rehabilitation. (All that book cleaning was the real first step, but we're now talking structural)
Once the bricks were down, Chris, cleaned and stacked all the intact ones in this most impressive pile. Its clean rectangular lines are startling. I've gotten so used to sloping floors, crooked door jambs, and the complete absence of right angles.
No comments:
Post a Comment