More Holes, Part 2

(Continued from previous post.)

Next target: the archway wall next to where we found the chimney yesterday.

Interesting.  I made the hole in the outer wall, but someone had already made a hole in the plaster wall underneath.

For good measure, they put a drill-hole in the brick they found when they made the plaster hole.  In any case, no real surprises in here.

Next, I tried making a hole in a ceiling.  In the archway, since I was already there and all.

 Again, no big surprises.  Except for a couple of nibbled black walnuts - you can see them in the left of this picture, sitting on the 2x4.
This shot faces toward the end of the house, away from the chimney.  To the right is the plaster wall that was originally at the back of the living room.  To the left, not sure what that darker member at the top is - maybe something framed in when the arch was created (although the other lumber is obviously different).

 So, two nice new holes:

Penultimate target, the "bump out" in the LR corner next to the wall I tore up yesterday.

 Lots of dead space here, and a couple of steam pipes (to the front and back bedrooms, above).

 Again, I made a second hole for good measure.

I tried to pull down some ceiling around the pipe-holes to get a view above, but the space was tight and the ceiling plaster is on %@)#*%^ metal lath backing which is a pain in the tush to break.

However, this does look like it could be a beam running front-to-back over the wall (this is looking left in the previous shot; upper-left in the frame is "up" in real life).

Last new hole - banged my way through the reverse-facing lath to the left of where we found the pipe and chimney yesterday (at right; this view faces rearward in the LR).  As expected, the plywood back of the shallower builtin section in the next room is now visible.

 Nothing special in here except a coax and Ethernet wire for the FiOS service. 

Oh, yeah, and I tried to get into the library ceiling near the builtins, but was foiled by the metal lath.  I'm mad at this stuff.  More violence will be done to it soon.