Saturday 16 January 2010

The walls speak

Sorry, this is not a paranormal post about Zoila - just a progress report about our lounge room.

There is a short bit of skirting board which is different to the rest of the boards in the lounge room. We didn't pick up on it straight away. It is very similar to what is already there, so you don't instantly notice it.


The odd one out


What the profile should be

After we became aware, it taunted us defiantly, "Look at me! Nah, nah, ne-nah-nah." The insolence!

This morning it was payback time. Jason ripped it off the wall and discarded it on the pile of building detritus he is accumulating.



Jason pulling off the offending board

I always get a bit excited when things get taken down or ripped off walls. I always imagine what we might find, like gold dubloons or gemstones hidden under the boards. Stupidly hopeful, eh?

Well, there were three reasonable sized holes on the VJ walls (it looks like borers had had a feast at one stage?) hiding behind the skirting board. Perhaps the skirting board had been replaced with the incorrect profile. It would be easy enough to make that mistake and easy enough just to nail it on anyway. Who would care? (but OCD us)

From the holes in the VJs, all this dust and other rubbish spilt out onto the floor; disgusting but interesting.

When Jason swept it up, I saw there were scraps of torn newspaper in the dust pan. I fossicked like I was on an archaeological dig, carefully unfolding the bits and pieces I retrieved.



Scrapping through the rubbish

It appears the newspaper is the now-defunct Brisbane daily The Telegraph. Unfortunately, the paper is just torn yellowed scraps but it did give me one piece of important information from the classified ads: 1935 Oldsmobile, newly ducoed (?).

I know I am clutching at straws, but it gives me an approximate year of when that particular board was replaced and clearer information about when the Sow's Ear was built. When the walls speak, I listen.



The final walls being prepped for painting

I'm keeping the scraps of newspaper to put it in the house dossier. Also, I'm holding off on the house research at the library until the bigger boys are back at school.

Three kids and archival research don't mix.

7 comments:

  1. Oooh Anita, I love finding really old stuff like that. I always get excited when I pull apart an old sofa hoping to discover treasures....usually only find old toenail clippings which is a bit of a let down, but there's always the next couch!
    Angex

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  2. Hi Anita

    I hope you don't mind me stopping by. I keep seeing "Brismod" on some of the blogs I follow and thought I'd pop by and say hi. I'm so happy I did, you have a lovely blog and a fantastic renovation story unfolding...what fun! Nice to "meet" you here. Meredith.

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  3. thats really great I love those old newspapers and good on you for defiantly ripping away. We had a carpenter once who told us he was working on an old wall panel in a house and they pulled it away and there was a foot there from the 1920s (still in its boot)> he said it was most inconvenient they had to stop work whilst the police were called !!! xoxo

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  4. I love to learn little snippets about life as it may have been in our old house also. Quite satisfying isn't it! Those walls are going to look so amazing once painted.

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  5. Hi Anita, Looking good! We renovated a very old home a few years ago and we ripped off the skirting too, but there were a few similar holes (where the boards didn't quite meet the walls) and one day my hubby dropped his wedding ring down there! There was no space to crawl under the house, so he had to rip up sections of the boards to find it! And because it had rolled it was a process to locate it. I told him not to bother but he was determined to find it! haha!! Agree that research and kids don't mix ha :)

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  6. Oh So Cool Anita!!! Wonder why that was left behind there? Used as insulation maybe? Very Interesting!! Cant wait to see what you find next!

    LOL on Ange's comment!

    Big Hugs ~ Teresa

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  7. Ah bugger - I haven't found the treasure in our old house either and goodness knows I ripped a few walls out ( you'll find out about that next time). If you can't take your boys to document hunt - I consider this ill boding for me homeschooling my chidlings... give me hope! Give me hope!!

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