taking apart
the empty boxes so they lay flat.”
“Why?”
“Easier to throw out that way. Oh that is
another thing, I have to check to see what day garbage pickup is
and if it’s the same as the day they pick up grass cuttings and
such. I saw two large bins outside, but we still need to get a
garbage pail for the kitchen. Jim, this is not high on the list,
but I would like you to measure all of the windows so I can
eventually go and pick out window curtains. Can anyone think of
anything I left out?”
All three of her family members looked at her
and said at the same time “NO.”
“Good, Jim, maybe you should get the beds put
together first so we won’t have to sleep on the mattresses on the
floor again tonight. Then I can make up the beds properly.” Sarah
looked around the living room as if she were looking for something.
‘That is odd. When we first pulled up I could have sworn I saw a
puff of smoke coming out of the chimney and I remember thinking how
nice that the house has a fireplace.”
“No fireplace.” Jim said, “There wouldn’t be
a fire lit in it anyway, not in June.” “Of course you are right. I
was exhausted tired when we finally got here. I must have just
imagined it.”
Jim took Suzanne with him to purchase a car
and take care of the other things Sarah had on the list for him to
do. This way it would give Sarah more time to work without her
youngest daughter underfoot.
By the time the family sat down for dinner,
they were eighty percent done with their list of things to do, and
one hundred percent exhausted. Except for Suzanne, who kept asking
if she could go outside and run around? Being that the lot was on
the corner and that they had not met any of their neighbors or
noticed if there were any large dogs around, both mom and dad told
her no for today. That didn’t sit to well with Suzanne and she made
it known.
“Sarah, this chicken and rice dish is
wonderful, where did you find the time to do everything you did
today, plus make such a great meal?” Jim complimented his wife. “No
problem, just threw everything into the crock pot this morning and
let it cook on slow all day. I love that crock pot, such a time
saver.”
“Can we talk about the basement for my
bedroom now, please?” Riley asked. Sarah cleared the table and said
“Let’s check out what is down there. Jim, bring the suitcases down
with you, we can store them there.” Sarah said, picking up a
shopping bag full of laundry soaps and dryer sheets to take down
with them.
The basement looked larger than you would
have imagined it to look from the outside of the house. It was not
finished, just one big basement with cement floors. Jim was happy
to see that the washer and dryer had arrived and had been set up
without any scratches on them. The only thing there besides the
furnace and hot water heater was some furniture which looked pretty
nice, and a door against one of the basement walls.
Sarah walked over and opened it. There was a
narrow, long room with nothing in it. “I wonder why this is here.”
Sarah said.
Suzanne pushed her way around her mom and dad
and looked into the room.
“It’s a jail for bad little sisters.” Riley
said. Suzanne grabbed her father’s leg and held on tight. “It is
not, is it daddy?” She asked.
“It’s an old fashion coal room.” “What is
that?” Riley asked.
“When this house was first built it ran on
coal. The coal would be fed into a furnace that was built to
accommodate it and that is how they would keep the house heated.
See that window?” Jim said pointing to a window inside of the
enclosed room. “That is where the truck would put a slide or sort
of chute and they would just dump the coal into this room. The
house has a modern furnace in it now so I guess they use it just
for storage now.
“Can I make this my bedroom, dad?” Riley
asked again. “Well, it is cooler down here than it is upstairs. You
will have to wait until I change the locks and make