This morning I got out of bed, shut off the irrigation at 6:00AM, and came back and started taking the drop ceiling out of the dining room. That made the room feel so much bigger than before! Then after missus was off work for the day I moved the light that hung over the dining room table from the drop ceiling location to the old position in the center of the room about 18 inches higher than where it hung before. That made it finally hang high enough nobody would bump into it! I really liked that, especially as the tallest one in the family. Hanging the light back at the middle of the room took the focus off the off center location it had been hung in, and no longer obligated the dining room table to be right under it, so I moved the table to a spot in front of the window. That put a huge empty spot in the middle of the room where a line could easily from in front of the built in buffet, or what the Hell, I could dance with my wife! Finally, I rewired some faulty wiring on a lamp and put in a bright LED bulb to set the lamp in the middle of the dining room table. I cannot wait till sunset so I can see how the lighting actually has worked out in the new format. 
Here is the light in the old position after I removed the ceiling. This put it right over the dining room table, just off centered in the room, with the wire leading to the original position above. I removed the bit of wire and hung the lamp above on the ceiling.
The drop ceiling hung to the top of the transom window, so I have to make a bit of molding from some pine in the garage, and stain it up, as seen in this photo.
Removing the drop ceiling not only stopped the center of the room from being the dining room table, but also made the built in hutch appear much smaller, removing the focus off it too. The dining room table is now free to sit wherever it wants in the room. I am also seeing the space for a nice 8 foot Christmas tree fitting with plenty of room for a topper on it, and it still not hitting the nine and a half foot ceiling. The only question now is, when we walk into the room, what era do we want to walk into? Will it be the 1920’s, or the ‘30’s? Or shall we focus on the country cottage look instead?
The best bit is that the house is getting back a touch of the glory it had when it was built. It has been some time since it has seen itself shine, and I think that a good bit of un-decorating will have as much value as a lick of paint and a bit of wood stain.
Kelsey J Bacon