The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

HISTORIC WATERLOO The before and after photos indicates this house has had its share of hard times. Set back from Columbia Avenue, the house is on University of Waterloo porperty and is reached by a long one lane dirt road. _ _ â€" The house hasn‘t been called a home now for some 10 years or more. It was last lived in by a family named Schmidt and thus is known to some people as the Schmidt house. The sandy coloured house is owned by the Univerâ€" sity and had, for a number of years, been used as a storage building. On April 2, 1968 a fire caused by sparks from a nearby bonfire produced $15,000 damâ€" age in the house. A new roof was put on, new window frames and doors put in and hand hewn beams proâ€" vided by local Mennonites. â€" Built in 1850, the stone farm house is considered to be the most authentic old stone Mennonite home in the area. $ Evidence of the building once having had a fire though can be seen around the basement door, where the top part of the door frame is black and burnt, but still serving its purpose. It was originally built though by John E. Brubacker according to Dr. Fretz, from Conrad Grebel College. Dr. Fretz said Mr. Brubacker owned considerable land in the area and had also built the barn, which is to the west of Columbia Lake, and a red brick house, which is further down the road. The 1850 Mennonite style house is pictured as it looks today with windows boarded up. Getting it back in shape The house as it looked before, possibly back in the 1920‘s The house has also been going through a long procâ€" ess of restoration. Dr. Fretz said a project was startâ€" ed in 1966 with the Mennonite Historical Society and the University of Waterloo to restore the house and furnish it to the era in which it was built. The project has come along very slowly over the years and has slowed down even more recently because of the lack of money. Dr. Fretz said the walls of the house are about 20 inches thick and the original fireplace is still in the basement. He described the fireplace by saying it was not the type where the family would gather and sit around for an evening but was used for heavy cookâ€" ing and provided heat for the house in winter. The chimney from the fireplace is situated so that it runs through the middle of the house and it used to cast off heat to the two upper floors. There is also two large cisterns in the basement, which are just walled wells built inside a house, into which roof water drained. Dr. Fretz said this provided soft water for washing. The house is built on a hill so that entrance to the basement may be gained on the south side and enâ€" trance upstairs on the higher part of the hill on the north side of the house. It may be another few years before the house is reâ€" stored to the point, where those interested in it, would like it to be. But when it is done, it is planned to look like the before picture with the after hopefully forgotten. trying to compete with Bill Smiley, only provide a loâ€" cal column in the Chronicle every now and then. Welcome to Waterioo‘s Boondoggle Acres. _ This ‘"is a new ‘"subâ€"div‘ as I call it. It‘s a community so singleâ€"minded that by age three, the kids are apt to call everyone ‘"profesâ€" sor"‘. Why not? They‘ve never met anyone else‘ How life is in the Boonies It‘s a planned community, planned to make the real estate company rich. There are parks, curving streets, rules which nobody obeys, and recreational facilities. I remember well when the recreational facilities were finished. It was in late Ocâ€" tober that a letter was sent warning those who wished to sign up for the tennis court that weekend to do so immediately to avoid the rush that would no doubt occur. Well California this isn‘t! It snowed. Sunday is by far the most exciting day here in the Acres. _ That‘s when the tourists come. the friendly neighbourhood real estate agent turns up and whips out the slightly battered ‘"‘Open Houses‘" signs. Private observation: why are ‘"Open Houses" so often locked? It‘s easy to tell in adâ€" vance what caliber of crowd we‘ll have on any given Sunâ€" day just by reading the newspaper ads for the previâ€" ous few days. For instance, if the Acres is described as ‘"exclusive‘‘ Boondoggle Acres, we can all hold our heads a little higher and arrange to look ‘a trifle snooty as we gaze out the windows at the peasants driving by. If, on the other hand, the real estate comâ€" pany is having a bad week, you can bet we‘ll be desâ€" cribed as "middleâ€"priced‘" Boondoggle. Somewhat of a comedown, wouldn‘t you say? Ah and we‘re ready for them. â€" Shortly after noon, The tourists arrive...all five of them. For a street that normally sees a flock of pigeqons, the odd cow and several dogs, this is a real traffic jam. First we have the speedy types who barrel ahead, throttle full out, pretending that they are only using this road as a shortcut to get from point A to point B in a hurry. No matter that the road starts and ends noâ€" where worthy of note. . Now a tourist never wants to appear obvious... subtlety is the keynote at all times. There are difâ€" ferent plays they use. The Waterloo Family Y are still accepting regisâ€" trations for family campâ€" ing at Camp Kiâ€"Waâ€"Y, Paraâ€" dise Lake near St. Clemâ€" ents. The program includes all meals, accommodation in cabins, swimming. rowâ€" ing. _ canoeing. _ archery, volleyball, basketball. horseâ€" shoes, crafts, cards, jogging, hikes and other activities. Next, we have the ones Waterioo Chronicie, Wednesday, August 8, 1973 5 who are just visiting the neighbours. They drive into a driveway (any one will do) and hesitate. You could swear you heard them yelling, "Get your hair out of curlers, Maude, we‘re here‘"" Then almost as if they remember the water running in the bathtub at home, they‘re off. And finally we have the "just out for a casual Sunâ€" day drive"‘ type. Driving slowly down the ~street, this chap keeps his head directed â€" straight â€" ahead. He won‘t stoop to gawking! But we all know that he must have a severe pain in the neck at the end of the day. Occasionally though, you can catch one of them off guard. He may have let his head turn ever so slightly and then he sees you waving at him, your face ablaze with smiles. This lets him know that you know that he is trying to see what color your sofa is and it throws him right off! Of course, you‘d have to be a dog lover to live on this street. It has, for obvious reasons, become known as Dogpatch Ave. The cast of characters is impressive... thoroughbreds, mongrels, adults, puppies, you name it, we have it. And leadâ€" ing the cast of weirdos is our pooch, Flower. She is, I kid you not, a cross beâ€" tween a German Shepherd and a dachshund. This may seem beyond the realm of possibility, but there she is barking, â€" burrâ€"ridden proof of the wonders of naâ€" ture. As added incentive for prospective customers, the real estate company has occasionally â€" had _ sales. Special for you today, my friend, houses reduced by thousands. _ Great deal... until you find out that this doesn‘t include those little extras that make life so pleasant like doorhandles, railings, lights and floors. Rumour has it we have one celebrity in the group, a champion who has won obedience trials. This has to be the only canine on the block to respond willingly to a command. My mutt will return home only if I yell, for all sundry to hear, ‘‘*spicy meatballs‘"‘. As the sun sets over the Acres, a gentle "quack, quack‘"‘ is heard. Our resiâ€" dent flock of fat, comnâ€"fed ducks arrives at the back door for dinner, on time if you please. In the fading light of day, a gathering on the street. Ah, the dogs. Of course, it‘s 5 o‘clock and the Snapâ€" py Snacks truck is overâ€" due again. The Kitchener Family YMCA â€" will be holding swimming lessons for Red Cross Awards beginning Monday Aug. 20. Only 15 families can sign up due to the limited facilâ€" ities. Cost of the camp is $ per day per person from Aug. 27 to Sept. 1. Junior,. prebeginner and beginner levels will be inâ€" cluded