Unexpected Football, Free Arcade Games, and a Tour of Hackley House and Hume House

November 25, 2023

After a slow and relaxing/sedentary day… a few of us decided to head out of the house today. Our main goal: a tour of the Hackley and Hume Houses in Muskegon.

While driving, we learned that we were a little early (the houses were on a holiday tour schedule).

Which worked out pretty well, actually. Liz and Anne headed out to procure more cheese; Kirt and I found a nearby bar that had the OSU/Michigan game, and settled into a few beers.

There were several bar/options along the Western Avenue (a really great stretch of restaurants and shops). We ended up going in to Socibowl (which was right next door to The Early Owl).

Found an open table, and settled in.

Towards the fourth quarter, Liz and Anne joined us. At this point, we had moved up to the bar, after a space opened up.

A tense fourth quarter: OSU had possession, down 6 points, and were trying to move the ball down field. A touchdown would tie the game; the extra point would be theirs for the win.

I was secretly rooting for OSU, given that it’s my alma mater. But I knew better than to vocalize this, since I was in Michigan territory. Sadly, the drive ended with an interception and Michigan ended up winning, 30-24.

There was a back arcade room, which I ended up discovering on the way to the bathroom. Looking around, it was a smattering of pinball machines, a few standup arcade games, skeeball, and a Super Chexx hockey game.

To my delight, I saw that there were several free credits on a hybrid Ms. Pac-Man/Galaga machine. So of course I fired up a game of Galaga.

Did fairly well, all told.

Fast forward about two blocks over, on Webster AVenue, which features a row of old, stunning Victorian houses.

A view of Hume House.

Selfie before the tour.

Walking in, with the Hackley House in the background.

Pausing to admire the woodwork. Something we’d be doing an awful lot, over the next hour.

The Hackley House in the background, in all its photogenic glory.

Liz, noting some features that she wants to replicate at our house.

Liz and Kirt, discussing ways to reproduce the look.

I’m in awe, and I haven’t even step foot inside any building yet.

During our visit, we heard several bells chiming. Turns out, there was a horse-drawn carriage that took people around the downtown area. Very lovely, and added to the historical feel of our visit.

Inside the main house, there was a carriage for visitors to try out.

Carriage selfie!

Outside Hackley House.

Liz was excited to show me: the door hardware at Hackley House was the exact same as our house hardware.

The interior doors were just jaw-droppingly beautiful.

The intricate detail in the woodwork is just difficult to describe. It looks incredible in photos, and is even more incredible in person.

Liz, pointing out more hardware.

A pretty serious hinge.

Wizard Oil!

More passengers, ready to depart.

Inside Hume House, this was an incredibly tall/decorative radiator.

Liz noted that it was interesting/different that the dining room had tile flooring.

One of the tour guides pointed out the baseboards, which showed a bit of wear and damage (due to the floor being cleaned over many years).

An upstairs bedroom, showing an old Victorian tradition. Apparently, parents set up a series of strings – tying each one to a specific gift. On waking in the morning, children would trace each string to try to “find” each gift.

A little difficult to see, but I was heartened to see that even the Victorian carpenters struggled with their interior trim. We have a lot of weirdly cut rosettes in our house, and it’s nice to know there’s a historical precidence for that weirdness.

Back home, another day done, another charcuterie board before dinner.

We hung out for a long while in the living room, with most of us eventually taking a quick/late dinner.

Towards the late evening, Jackson was hanging out with us… and we talked about student internships, and ways that he could explore topics he was interested in (before college). Liz and I are both fans of going into used college bookstores, and trying to peek at the various books/syllabi for future courses.

Late in the evening, I was talking with Jackson a bit about how Liz and I met. And how we both knew Shirley (the Muffin Lady). And her incredibly rich/wild life – how she was a staple of the bars in Wicker Park (and was also a mean pool player).

We touched a bit about neighborhoods, and locals. And how living in an area allows you to meet the characters and personas/people that make a neighborhood a neighborhood.

Long day, with a lot of looking back. On going to bed, when I closed my eyes… I could still see glimpses of the incredible woodwork we saw. It’s amazing to think the house is over a hundred years old, and has lasted to this day; it’s also amazing to imagine it lasting another hundred years.