Ruinous activities

Half of the barn has collapsed and the other half has a serious leaning problem. Can you spell R-U-I-N-S?

We’re looking at an old south Arkansas barn. From the looks of things, we better look fast. It is on its last legs, teetering on collapse. The story, on “ruins,”  started on the Photo of the Week page at Corndancer dot com. To see some other pictures of the barn and get in on the start of the story, click here. A cool and rewarding thing to do.

The “good” half of the barn, so to speak. Behind the leaning wall is a mid-seventies Ford Torino, (if my car ID cells are functioning properly).

The barn is a typical setup. There was loft for hay, stalls for mules and other livestock, and dry storage for feed. In its time, it served well. While many of us look at the nostalgic aspects of an old barn, we tend to forget that the structure was part of a business. And that part of the agri-business has about as much use today as carbon paper does in a modern office. Still …………….

The welcome mat is not out.

The house which went with the barn is still standing and in substantially better condition than the barn. It has what appears to be a “sleeping porch,” a now-forgotten part of many homes of the mid-forties and earlier. A sleeping porch was screened, preferably on the east side of the house since you were attempting to sleep in a cooler environment. Having stacked a few z’s on a sleeping porch, I can give the concept a hearty thumbs up. It has been a few moons however.

Call it a "sleeping porch museum."

When the house was deserted, bed springs were left on the porch. That seems to be the most popular thing to leave behind. In most abandoned houses I’ve seen, there are always bed springs or mattresses. Can’t get ‘em in a car I guess. The door is boarded up and one window is covered with corrugated roofing metal.

A lightning rod and a lightning rod weather vane combination.

Lightning rods are perched on the roof of the house. I once worked for a man who told me that if I saw lightning rods on a house to bore in and sell ‘em anything I could, because if they spent good money on lightning rods, they could be convinced to buy anything.

Things you don’t expect to see department

Somehow, on the outskirts of a small southern town, you just do not expect to see a chopper on the porch. A couple of four wheelers, 50 gallon ice chest, a couple of cats, and a "broke-down" trolling motor, yes. A chopper no. Also a satellite dish and a TV antenna, no less.

Thanks for dropping by,
Stay cool and keep your powder dry,

Joe