6. FROM ANOTHER TIME

I have always found basements to be particularly scary.

Maybe is it because of all the horror films I watched growing up. Today I need to see what is in the basement. With any luck Old Mrs Grindle would have avoided going into the basement also because of the stairs that you need to take to go down there.

I open the door in the short hallway on the ground floor. The short hallway leads from the living room area to a washroom at the back of the house. The washroom was also not very cluttered. There is a washing machine and a dryer. There is also an in-house wash line to hang your clothes. I didn't notice a wash line outside the house. I suspect Mrs Grindle was more like me than I initially thought. She didn't want to leave the house much either.

The basement isn't very cluttered. It is also not very dusty. For some reason it must be sealed off enough not to collect too much dust. I will just have to sweep a bit and wash some of the items to have it clean again. There are shelves against the wall with cans of paint stacked on it. There is a loose shelf on the other side with some tools and garden equipment. The middle floor space of the basement is practically clear. The far side of the basement has a few things stacked against it. Most of it looks like old washing machines and appliances that I suspect does not work anymore. I am sure there is no way to get rid of these unless you get someone to remove them for you and then take them away. I can completely understand why they are still here.

I clean the basement as best I can, starting at the far wall and working my way back to the staircase.

It is afternoon when I am done with the most of the work. The last corner I still need to pay attention to is the dark little corner behind the stairs. I go up to the ground floor to bring my portable spotlight with. I absolutely hate not being able to see what I am doing. I would get very irritated when there is not sufficient light around me to see what I am doing. When I am doing nothing on the other hand, I absolutely love not having a lot of light around me.

I set up the spotlight to light the area beneath the stairs. There are a few big boxes stacked beneath the stairs. I pull out the boxes and open them to look inside. The first box contains books and old magazines. The second box I pull out is full of picture frames and wall art. I do not bother to unpack the boxes. I move them next to the broken appliances to sort out later. The third large box has a few household items in them. Everything seems old and outdated.

When I pull the last box away from the door, I notice a large wooden panel placed against the wall. I do not even open the last box. I just drag it all the way to the other boxes. I pull the panel away from the wall. I can see spiderwebs pull apart as I move the wooden panel. I cannot really see behind the panel as the spotlight is set exactly so that the wooden panel now casts a too dark shadow for me to see. I pull the panel against the wall to the section of the wall where I have already cleaned.

With the panel now not casting a shadow against the wall, I can see that the panel was in fact in front of a door. It was hiding a door in the basement.

I find this a bit scary. Why would there be a hidden door in the basement. The basement as it is, is already underground. Where on earth can a basement door lead to.

I walk slowly to the door to try the door handle. Some part of me wishes that the door is locked and that it would not open. Another part of me wants the door to open so I can see what is behind it.

I barely touch the door when it creaks open a few inches. I turn back to get my mobile spotlight and open the door fully to let the light shine in.

It is a small room. It is completely empty. The walls and floor are raw cement. There is a coldness coming from it that makes me shiver. On the direct opposite wall of this door is another door. I walk into the small room to see if the other door is open. My hand shakes a little when I reach out to take hold of the doorknob. I turn it slightly and hear the distinct click of a door opening after a long time.

The moment I open the door slightly a bright light comes streaming in from outside. I peak through the small opening of the door. I can hear the birds chirping and I can see the sun shining through the trees. I open the door fully and walk outside. I close the door behind me and stand on the small step looking at the scene in front of me.

For a moment I think it is the same yard around my house, but then I hear a vehicle driving on a road not too far from where I am standing. I walk a few feet into the garden in front of me and turn back to look at my house. It is not my house though. It is merely a door in a very tiny building. There is nothing significant about this building. It has a flat roof. It has no windows and there is nothing around it but trees and rocks. It looks like it could be a small storage space built of bricks.

I turn to the direction of the road where I heard the car driving past. It is very close to the little building. I walk the few feet to the road and see that the small building is directly behind an old bus stop. An old car pulls up in front of me. The driver leans over to speak to me through the passenger side window of the car.

"Where would you like to go Miss?" the man looks outdated. He is wearing an old brown suit and his hat is set on the passenger seat next to him. He has an old briefcase in the back of his car. He seems very friendly though. He waits a while for me to answer but I am too busy looking at everything in his car to really answer him right now.

"There are no busses on Sundays Miss." He says again and smiles at me. Waiting for me to answer him. I realise that I have been silent too long.

"Oh no, I am not going anywhere. Thank you." I try to sound sure about myself even though my head is absolutely reeling. He nods and gives me a friendly smile before he drives off.

It is not long before two other old cars come driving past.

I turn to look at the bus stop where I am standing. The sign on the side of the bus stop is advertising Snapple Tru Root Beer. The bottle on the advertisement looks very old and outdated. I have never heard of it before seeing this advertisement today.

I take a deep breath and turn back to look at the small building behind the bus stop.

I walk over to it but look over my shoulder occasionally to see if anyone is watching me. I open the door to the small building. There is a bright light shining from inside the darkness. It is almost blinding. I step into the building and close the door behind me. My eyes adjust slowly and I realise the bright light blinding me is my portable spotlight I left in the doorway of the small room when I entered it. I pick up the spotlight as I walk into the dark basement of my house. I close the door behind me and push the wooden panel against the door again.

I rush up to the ground floor of my house and close the door to the basement and lock it. I stand looking at the door in the short hallway of my house. My heart is pounding and my head is reeling. I put the spotlight on the floor next to the door and go to the study.

I sit at the desk and nervously pull the keyboard closer. The computer opens the search engines as soon as I click on them. I have never been this grateful for a fast computer.

I search Snapple Tru Root Beer. The same picture that was on the advertisement sign against the bus stop comes up on the screen.

Discontinued in the 1980's