Living (in a ) History Museum

Over the last few months of living here in Douglas, I have talked and written about how nice the slower pace of life has been for me. As is with so many things, a lot of things are good about life being slower. However, there are always a few glitches to the good stuff!!! Getting things done takes just a tad bit longer here.......

My grandparents bought the house here at 858 14th St. in 1918. It was built in 1915 and the story is that my grandfather watched it being built and told my grandmother that he would love to buy the house and would if it ever was sold. My mom was just a baby when they moved in and Teresa was born in the dining room in 1922. So the house is 95 years old and our family has lived in it continuously for the past 92 years! This would be amazing anywhere, but is particularly hard to imagine in Arizona.

The weather in Douglas is very different than the valley. Although it does get hot in the summer, it cools off at night. We have always had a cooler in the hall between the upstairs and downstairs and it works very well for most days in the summer. The cooler had to have a board put over it so that the cold air couldn't come in!! The winter brings freezing temperatures at night, but the days are really nice. This past week, temperatures have been very cold during the night. It has been 27 to 30 degrees every morning for the past week. Even the pugs have needed the electric blanket!
There hasn't been a heater upstairs for quite some time because no one slept upstairs. Since I came, Teresa decided to order a heater. Getting it ordered and installed has taken a bit of time. As I said, things move much slower down here. Thankfully, I have had an electric blanket upstairs because it has really been cold. When I got home today, the heater had finally been installed. I will be able to get ready upstairs tomorrow morning!
When the bathroom had a leak earlier in the fall, it took about two and a half weeks to get a new toilet....... Sometimes I feel as though I am camping!!!!

The downstairs is heated by a furnace in the floor between the living room and the dining room plus a wall heater in the bathroom. In a discussion with Teresa earlier, she told me that the furnace was installed in 1945. It is the same furnace today!!!
And probably the best story of living in an old house........ When I had the little problem with the bed in the space that it barely fit and I had it moved.......well, it has felt like it has been on a slant ever since. So I asked Teresa to ask Eddie when he came to finish the heater to check the bed and see if it maybe wasn't on the frame just right. It was, but guess what???? Yes, it is true....The floor has moved over the years and is not even!!! Hopefully, I can put a blanket or something between the mattress and box springs so that it will be even!!!

So as I enjoy the slower pace of life, I also have also reflected on such a different way of life without central heating and cooling, etc. I have been able to laugh (sort of) without a bathroom for a few weeks and needing to have an electric blanket to stay warm!! I have to say that it continues to be a wonderful experience and I feel blessed (and thankful) to be back here. 858 14th Street is just a house, but it is truly a HOME to me, to my kids, and to many of the other members of the extended Scott Family.

Ninety two continuous years is an amazing statistic!!!