May News...

Dear Family,

We were the featured episode this month, on the PBS syndicated show "This Old House with Norm Abrams". Norm's executive producer approached us to see if we could participate in one episode. They were seeking candidates who resided in older homes with faulty plumbing. After mulling the idea and the potential "15 minutes of Fame" we hastily accepted the offer. No more than 24 hours later, we had a camera crew, which were very demanding, with their large spotlights and several hired hands filming in the front of our house. They proceeded to place a "Plumbing Cam" in the main line of the house. It was fascinating to see the inner workings of our plumbing. As they proceeded into the line of the house, we noticed some roots dangling into the main sewer pipe. They consulted with Norm over the phone and they told us that the sewer should be fully clogged in a few days, enough time to fly Norm out from New England. Instead of waiting for it to occur, they gave us a business card and told us to call them when sewage begins to backup and they told us to use as much toilet paper. A few days later, in the latter part of the evening, the Children's bathroom began to backup. Instead of of calling them, I decided to use Dad's method of using the toilet plunger. After a brief 30-minute workout, things did not bode in my favor. The following morning, I made the call. A few hours later, the whole crew was here again with their sophisticated equipment. Where was Norm, I was told that he was on his way. In the meantime, they started filming the kids bathroom. Personally, I saw no drama just a camera crew looking into a messy bathroom. I thought too soon, not a second later; a small guy was jack hammering the concrete floor of the bathroom. I spoke with the producer and he gave me an update and he did inform me that we had a cracked sewer line and it was full of tree roots. An hour later, the concrete was gone, and they started removing the gravel and dirt used to bury the sewer line. As they were digging, they came across a 3 inch diameter tree root that was snaking itself into the vicinity of the main line.

The producer like it and they proceeded to put makeup on a local plumber and that was when I was informed that Norm was unable to make it. The Plumber did several takes to get his line correct. I was also told to remove the "Families are Forever with Jesus's picture" the adjacent bathroom wall. The Producer was afraid that it might offend its "non-partisan" viewers. Personally, the Producer did not have a problem with it but it was more of a corporate guideline....I said no and everything stopped. They left and took everything, except the garbage of our front lawn. For once it was quiet, except a few birds and crickets chirping and the plumber was nice enough to finish the job. The bathroom is still in the process of being remodeled and it should be done shortly.

It has been a busy month here in Folsom. The kids are finishing school and it seems they did well in school and they are looking forward to the summer break. However, Kimo isn't looking forward to the summer break, especially when the kids are home 24/7. Hopefully, we can avoid the doldrums of summer this year.

Love,
Smiths