I bought 1900 House on eBay last week (after being shown a fragment at the IHS seminar) and finished watching the whole thing today. It is fantastic! It really is funny how quickly one gets used to comfort. I, for instance, didn't have a dishwasher until I moved to Seattle, and now non-dishwasher safe items keep piling up in the sink. The moral? Amenities and appliances are wonderful, but you can -- and you should when you must -- do without them.