Little House on the Pond

All right, it's not a real house. And the lack of windows would be a problem. But this strange little reservoir house in the middle of the pond, with no boat in sight, always makes me stand on the bank and ponder that green door.

There were small-mouth bass in the shallows yesterday, and newts suspended, legs dangling, just beneath the surface. Nearly all the snow had vanished from the woods in the suddenness of a seventy-degree week, but the forest floor was just beginning to wake up; no wildflowers in bloom yet, just the first fronds of Christmas ferns unfurling from their frozen, sleeping curl beneath the snow, and clusters of tightly-budded arbutus flowers hiding under the leaves. I chose the uphill trail and walked the long way round. Halfway up I saw a woman coming down with a young German shepherd; at the same moment we recognized each other - she was an old friend I hadn't seen for ten years. We stood and talked while the dog ran exuberant sprints up and down the trail, overjoyed by spring.

(Responses to the comments on the previous post are in the comment thread; I didn't have time to write everyone back as I like to do. Thank you for all the terrific comments and for our obvious shared passion for tiny houses, treehouses, and Rooms of One's Own!)

Comments

[marja-leena]

How nice that spring is there at last, and so warm! That's a curious structure; do you know what it's for? And is that in Montreal or in the US?

[beth]

It's in Vermont, Marja-Leena, and no I don't know. In some ponds I've seen that were built on New York State land by the CCC (Civilian Conservation Corps) in the 1930s, I've seen a structure in the center that houses a large cylinder that acts somehow to control the water depth - maybe someone else can explain exactly how, but that requires an open flow from the pond into the cylinder when the water gets too high. I don't think that's the case here, nor that this houses is for a pump, but I suppose it could be. Since this is a reservoir, the house may contain some kind of measuring equipment for water quality as well.

[Theriomorph]

Oh, I love these. I have the same conversations in my head, too: 'Okay, so it doesn't have windows. Do I need windows? I can make windows.' Here's another one in Vermont, this one still with the boardwalk out to it, though it's fenced off.

[beth]

yes, TH, that's exactly what I was thinking - "I could make windows..." - because in addition to loving snug little places, I'm a tiny bit claustrophobic - gotta have a window! Thanks for the picture of another reservoir house - we've got to find out what's in these things!

[Bill]

Neat picture. What a puzzle! Definitely a shrine of some sort, perhaps to chastity?

[Bill]

"Chastity", above, is a live link.

[beth]

Hmmm - the link isn't working, Bill, and I can't see from the comment what it refers to. But I like the image - that little house surrounded by its own "moat" does rather symbolize chastity, doesn't it?

[Bill]

Maybe this time?

[beth]

Wow. Great links, Bill! Thanks.