Ed and Me
by Larry Keith

Sometimes work and fun are happening at the same time. Classmate Ed Bettencourt retired from the plumbing business, and now spends most of his time working…at his waterfront house on Lake Conroe. Lots to keep him busy there, like a large lawn, garden, bulkhead, dock, boat, grandkids, and sitting on community committees. I recently took him away from all that hustle and bustle, so that he could have a little fun in the East Texas woods, advising me on how to plumb a tiny house where I intend to move to in due time.

This is Ed and me, standing in front of my newly installed “picture window” (which used to
be panels of a patio door, back in the 1960’s). Ed is looking with amazement at my state-of-the-art outhouse…. all of it built under a 4′ x 6′ skylight which I picked up at auction for $20. An old plumber can get a lot of amusement out of it, when you tell him you’ve been enjoying this out of the way cabin for 34 years, and never had running water or indoor plumbing.

The Outhouse