Sledge hammers, construction hats, and an excavator: weekend fun on the farm. Last Saturday we demolished the so-called pool house—a glorified shed, foundationless, with fluorescent wall colors, an upstairs crawl space/ “sleeping loft,” and numerous electrical hazards, which Alan removed before advancing the heavy machinery.
This building—may it rest in peace—was a special combination of nightmare funhouse and code-violation showpiece. (“Never seen a toilet like that,” said the building inspector when we bought the place. “I wonder where this leads to.” Turns out it piped into the farmhouse-basement septic, where the tank was installed upside down.) Naturally, we were eager for this Day of Destruction.
Step 1: remove all glass and disconnect electrical stuff; don’t forget those gorgeous lanterns!
Alan, ready to advance the Jaws of Doom
Construction hat: the new fedora
We’ve done SO much great work here!
Adjacent to the former pool house are, of course, the pool (also slated for annihilation), and the magnificent D-I-Y solar heating system, long abandoned and left to rot: a wooden panel the size of a Winnebago, adorned with coiled black hose. When this thing was functioning—back in the Bronze Age—it presumably pumped pool water through to warm it.
Soon this space will be a nice, green lawn. Ah, the joys of clearing clutter!
