Screen Cage

From letter dated March 11, 1953

We have been having a wonderful time in this peculiar new home of ours. It is a weird-y, but ideal in this climate. The screen, which entirely surrounds the house…roof and all…not only keeps the mosquitoes out, but cuts the glare of the sun amazingly. The house really is the most livable thing in the world and the easiest thing in the world to keep clean. I can fasten the two doors of the screen “cage” and turn the children loose. They have a large sandpile in the middle of the lawn and they can wander in or out of the house without my ever having to worry about them. Since it has been warm enough to keep all the doors open, entire walls of every room are open and wandering in or out is a pretty easy matter.

We are planning to go to Michigan late in June (at least that’s the tentative time). I don’t suppose we’ll really be through with the house even by then. Bucher let his building crew go while Mother and Dad were here at Christmas. We kept a handy-man for another six weeks or so, and he and Bucher finished up some odds and ends and all three of us continued painting. I have been chief of that end of the work…we are doing it all ourselves.

The entire outside is done, and some of the inside. However, we are staining the paneling with a mixture which you paint on, let set, then wipe off. I have discovered that the grain is prettiest if you let the paint get pretty tacky, then rub as if you were polishing fine furniture, really working at it. It takes almost five minutes of rubbing to do each board, and it is hard work at that. However, we think it is worth it because the paneling does look terrific when we finish.

The staining has gone very slowly, especially since I have only the time during Caril’s nap to work and have to fit in a certain amount of housework besides. Furthermore, we haven’t been able to stay at the work too well because we’ve had guests almost constantly since Christmas. The past two weeks are the first time we have had longer than six days between visitors. Of course it is lots of fun and we love having them.