Remember the old TV show, Mad About You, with Paul Reiser and Helen Hunt? There was a running gag in the show that their floor had a slight slope to it, but Helen Hunt was the only one who thought so. She would theatrically have her foot go out from under her when she reached that part of the floor.
I lived in a house like that from 8th to 10th grades. 46 Dowell Street in Slatington. No theatrics needed. The kitchen floor sloped downward toward the back of the house. It was an easily visible slope too, more of a slant, maybe a 30 degree slant (I admit math is not my thing). My nephew Jimmy was just a toddler then and if he would wander to the back of the kitchen, he would have to struggle to get back up the slope!
Some logistics. I grew up lower middle class. My parents never owned a home. My dad was a door to door salesman working on commission alone. My mom, due to a bad heart, did not work outside the home. So, we didn’t have a lot, but we had enough. We didn’t always rent the best places but most of them were just fine. Even 46 Dowell was fine, except for that slanted kitchen.
Beyond the kitchen was a small backyard followed by a wooded cliff that dropped down to the railroad and the creek below. There apparently was some concern that it was the whole cliff subsiding but it was determined that, no, it was just my house. Great.
The owners hired Dick Marlatt, a local contractor, to jack up the house. That is what they did. They jacked up the back of the house and added new supports. It was fun to watch and a little scary. What if the whole house falls apart while it is being raised? Thanks to the excellent work of Dick Marlatt and his assistant, Charlie (?) Cunfer (the father of a classmate!), the house was once again level and stable.
In hindsight, it was kind of fun living in a unique, funhouse type of dwelling. It was a good conversation starter. We had a lot of laughs watching my nephew struggle to walk uphill. The house is still there. I drove by it yesterday. I wonder if the kitchen is still on an even keel. My guess is yes.
As for Mad About You…I believe Helen Hunt!
A Semi-retired Kind of Life 