Living, including sleeping, in our house was far from pleasant. I remember, from the chilly autumn when the east winds and rain came, until the last snow disappeared in the Spring, there was a constant struggle to maintain home comfort. Our old house was never insulated against the cold. The damp, cold winds whistled their way through every little chink and cranny as well as around every window and door. Apparently we could not afford a storm window for each window. They did not seem to make much difference anyway. However, we all got used to this, as part of our way of life, here in the country. However, there was a great deal of work involved to keep this old house more or less comfortable. Our fuel supply was the wood-lot away at the back of the place. It was necessary to keep a plentiful supply in the wood-yard by the house. Every night we had to make sure that the wood-box was filled along with some dry kindling to use for starting fires again in the morning.

The stove-pipe from the stove in this area went up through the floor, through the master bedroom and thence into the chimney. This was the only heat source for Ma and Pa's room. Then there were two other small stoves. They were called "Box Stoves". One was set up in the parlour with its flue pipe passing through the bedroom above where Earl and Bob slept. However, this stove was used only on special occasions when we were entertaining special guests. The other similar stove heated the room occupied by Auntie and Grandma. The heat from this stove would heat our bedroom where Louis and I slept. These four chimneys had to be kept clean to avoid chimney fires, which were always a threat. Cleaning chimneys was part of the Spring house-cleaning.

Come nightfall, our house was lighted by smelly kerosene (coal oil) lamps. There was a lamp of some sort for each room of the house, along with a supply of matches in match holders. There was a lamp shelf at the head of the stairs for the bedroom lamps. In the livingroom there was a shelf for lamps as well as for the clock. There was the match safe with a scratching pad of sandpaper beside it. Each of these lamps had to be kept supplied with oil as well as have its glass chimney daily cleaned with a bit of old newspaper and polished with the faithful duster made from an outworn nightshirt. This form of lighting was only one step ahead of candle-light. In the course of time, an improvement occurred when Pa acquired the dealership for The Alladin Mantel Lamp Company. This did help to improve the lighting situation.

Other things also began to improve. The outdoor toilet which was located some distance from the back door, where it was a health hazard in winter, was at last found to be intolerable. So this was relocated into a part of the woodshed just outside the kitchen door. Now one could attend to natural functions without going out into the cold and wet. A steel tank replaced the earthen pit.

Eventually, hydroelectric power found its way into our community, and we were able to save up for a used electric range, followed by a used electric refrigerator, and then an electric-powered washing machine. Things were, indeed beginning, just beginning, to look better for Ma and Pa and their family.