Author Archives: Thor

It had resisted the best efforts of many; and the “cat perch” remained.  This design feature had served as a home for a stuffed gorilla when I first toured the house, and provided the entry for a “tunnel” into the … Continue reading →

I’ve always preferred gas stoves for cooking, but I recognize that electric ranges have their place.  Some people worry about the gas leaking, or incomplete combustion and inadequate ventilation, but I find the instant-on, instant-off, immediate heat control with no … Continue reading →

In addition to the large scale projects I am undertaking, there are some minor changes to make.  The bedroom is small, which is ok– a place to sleep and sometimes to languish, apart from the other active and public areas … Continue reading →

I have been flattered at some of the responses to my posts in this blog, and some of my readers actually want to know when I have something more to say.  I’m always skeptical at this level of interest, but … Continue reading →

Britain abandoned its measurement units in favor of the metric system long ago, leaving the US as the only industrialized country still using them.  There was a moment of opportunity in the seventies for us to join the modern world, … Continue reading →

When I discovered that the cost of removing the chimney was the same as repairing it, a whole new set of possibilities opened up.  I decided to remove the chimney, at least the upper portions of it, in order to … Continue reading →

It was one of many defects in the house identified by Inspector 7, not exactly hidden, but easy to overlook, given that large catchall category that so many other defects fell in.  The  annoying problems of inadequate home maintenance like … Continue reading →

I inherited my grandfather’s desk.  I’ve had it now for years, unused, holding old papers and postcards and artifacts of his time.  Many were momentarily interesting as I went through them, and I packaged them up for my dad to … Continue reading →

Michelangelo once explained that David had always been in that block of marble, he merely removed the parts of the stone that was not David. I don’t pretend that This Odd House contains a world treasure to be discovered within, … Continue reading →

The chained prerequisite dependencies all started from the need to repair the roof.  To repair the roof required that the chimney be repaired.  I obtained an estimate for doing so:  $2200. This seemed like a lot of money to tuck … Continue reading →