The Only Housse I Ever Lived In

My Dad never found a house in Tuscumbia for us to live in, so we settled in the next town called Sheffield. It was after the 2nd world war and housing was scarce.

It was a two bedroom house and my brother and I shared a room until he got too old and wanted to have a room of his own. We would listen to radio shows at night after we went to bed until our Dad would come to tell us to turn off the radio. We listened to the Shadow and a mystery show I can't remember the name of and on Saturday mornings there was a show about teddy bears and picnics. That was the name of the song they sang.

I remember when the extra room was being added on, I would walk on the floor joists and one time I fell through to the ground. I was so embarrassed and was glad no one saw me.

I remember we had a stove that stood on 4 legs. One night I heard a noise in the kitchen and got up to investigate. There was a big rat under the stove. I went and got my Dad's old work shoes on and stepped on the rats tail and then hollowed for help. My Dad came out and took care of the rat.

There was another time that I was walking by the bathroom and heard a coughing sound. The light was out and when I turned it on, I was staring down at the face of a rat in the toilet! He must have crawled up from the sewer. Mother called a neighbor over to dispatch the rat.

As my brother got older and went off to college, Mom and Dad gave me their master bedroom at the front of the house. I remember the day when I got my bedroom furniture (I still have it in my house today). It consisted of a bed with two bed side tables the the tops were the same height as the headboard. When they were in place, it really made the bed look good. Sometimes I would put the two end tables together and make a dresser out of them. The set didn't come with a dresser and must have cost less.

I lived in that house, 1202 Atlanta Ave., Sheffield, AL, all my life. My parents lived in it until they died. It was a good house.