Friday, April 22, 2016

a long time ago in a shed far away

OK not THAT long ago.
I was about eight.
Don't know how accurate this story will be ... mostly because it is the stuff of family legend and some in our family exaggerate. But here goes...

My grandparents were going to be visiting from The Netherlands. My Dad had picked them up from the airport and was bringing them to our house in Caistor Center. 
Instead of taking them straight to the house he drove up to the old abandoned house on the neighbours property. It looked haunted even back then. 
When he pulled up to the completely dark shell of a house he said to my totally stunned grandparents, "Oh, it looks like Carol forgot to pay the hydro bill."
Needless to say they were shocked to be shown that our family lived in what was, basically, a shed.
The best part about the story was that my grandfathers brother and sister-in-law were both in the car. And there was apparently a fair amount of 'my children are more successful than your children' going on between the two brothers. 
I was told that my grandfather was bordering on speechless (a rarity among Eleveld's of any time or place).
Don't know how long Dad kept up the façade
but we still laugh about that one all these years later.
The google earth picture shows how overgrown it is now 
but it hasn't changed much.

1 comment:

  1. That is pretty much how it happened......he only pulled into the driveway.....and they were so speechless.. He then back out and drove the 100 metres to our place..

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