Author: peterb51

28th September 2020

We were working like crazy today, there was energy like I haven’t felt in a long time.

I had lots of drawer fronts to stain, and we even went out to buy material including wood for the top of a large dresser that we found by the roadside.

It seems that every furniture piece we work on is a dresser, they are the mainstay of our business, and luckily there are many potential customers out there.

Not that there is a shortage of them on Marketplace, quite the contrary, there are hundreds. Kelli understands the price threshold that the majority of people are prepared to pay, and we target them.

They do get a good piece for the money.

We were putting the finishing touches to another dresser that we are trying to post before the end of the month.

Mike came round to continue work on the front lawn, they say that it has to get worse before it gets better, we’ll there is plenty of opportunity to get far worse.

26th September 2020

Kelli had been up twice in the night to feed the little dude.

When we returned after breakfast Kelli held it in her hand and watched as it died in front of her.

It was a horrible moment, there was nothing anyone could do, and she was really disappointed.

I was hoping that it would survive the first twenty-four hours, for Kelli’s sake. She cares for all creatures with the same compassion as she does with anyone she meets.

To add to this time of grief, Larry came over to announce that we had the wrong alternator. He showed me the difference between the original and the new, and clearly it was not the same.

Kelli rang round again to find the correct version, just as Mike arrived to work on the front lawn.

He was at our party, and I took the opportunity to ask if he could do something with it.

He turned up with his big truck and trailer filled with the instruments of death and destruction to lawns. He then proceeded to punctuate the ground with holes leaving slugs of dirt on the surface looking like we had been plagued with giant rabbit droppings.

We needed to go collect a new alternator from a different store and return the incorrect one.

As we couldn’t use the truck we had to cycle up to Kelli’s mom to borrow her vehicle. I had the alternator in a carrier bag on the handle bars. This did make the journey a little difficult with it continuously banging my leg, fortunately it was not far, and soon we were driving about collecting and dropping off car parts.

By then Mike had finished perforating our front garden, went off to source some top soil for the next stage of the makeover.

We had to return Mom’s car and collect our bikes.

Whilst we were there I had been coursed into trimming some bushes, a task I am not qualified to do, unless total destruction is expected, and then I’m an expert.

Having no idea of what I was doing I was dancing about clipping a branch here and a twig there like some demon barber.

I did manage to reshape them a bit, and it will always grow back and hide all my mistakes.

It had been a busy day full of twists and turns, and we even sold a piece of furniture.

25th September 2020

A day of mixed fortunes. There is truth in the saying “ Giving with one hand and taking away with the other.

I received my Menards cheque for fifty-seven dollars, my eleven percent discount for purchased I made over two months ago. I was beginning to think the whole thing was as a scam, now I could sit and wonder what to spend it on.

That was until Kelli got into the truck and try to start it. There was no juice in the battery at all, as we hadn’t needed to use it for a couple of days maybe we left a door open. We needed to find the cause, there is nothing like a duff battery going into the cold weather.

I went to see Larry to ask if he could give us a jump start which he kindly did. That is when we discovered that the alternator wasn’t charging, and needed replacing, bloody great!

Kelli called around the auto parts store to see if they had any in stock.

A local store had one, another said it could get one in store by four in the afternoon, as that was the cheapest we plumped for that one.

Whilst we were working on our furniture, Kelli noticed a tiny mouse walking towards her, it was really young as it hadn’t opened its eyes yet. She gathered it up and placed it in a box with some cushion filling to keep it warm.

Then she turned around and there was another one, where were they coming from?

That one joined its brother/sister in the box whilst I started to look for a nest.

I moved just about everything in the garage with no sign of anything.

Kelli was then trying to find someone who could possibly take the little critters, making phone calls to rescue centres and animal humane societies, but no one could help.

She put them in a cardboard box with a heating pad underneath, then we had to leave to pick up the new alternator for the truck.

When we returned found that one of the babies had died, but the other was moving around.

Kelli used a syringe with a thick hypodermic needle that I use for injecting glue into thin gaps to feed the tiny critter some kitten milk.

There was the worry about what we were going to do with it, but that was not a decision for today.

24th September 2020

Larry’s yard sale moved into top gear, with a steady flow of vehicles cluttering up the road in front of our house.

He would hide away in his garage and emerge like a black widow spider to engulf his victims/ customers.

We, on the other hand went into overdrive with Kelli re-painting the dresser she has concerns about. It had gone from green to white, with the top drawer now stripped ready for staining.

I wrestled with the top of another dresser trying to remove the screws holding it down.

Most came out easy, but the three at the back did not budge. I cursed the person who had assembled the carcass because they had driven in the screws before the back went on meaning they were angled, and difficult the remove from the front. I collected every straight slotted screwdriver I had, all of which failed to remove the screws. Perseverance helped me with two of them, but I was forced to take the back off to get at the others.

So a job that should have taken minutes must have taken an hour, still it was done and ready for the painting skills of my wife to transform it into a thing of beauty.

We also upgraded the piece that hadn’t sold by adding doors to the centre section.

I carefully fitted new hinges making sure that everything aligned perfectly. It was when I finished Kelli announced that they were the wrong colour hinges.

Fair enough, they were purchased when different handles were going to be fitted, but a day is a long time in the furniture business.

More modern chrome handed were preferred, and the doors were left off and gathered dust while we tried to sell it doorless.

It was decided that our only option was to paint the hinges.

We dragged the unit out to take new pictures in its new reiteration.

Now it was down to Kelli to post the piece on Marketplace.

23rd September 2020

It was time to knuckle down and get some furniture finished.

I had successfully stained and finished a dining table that we had for months, and the only reason it got finished was because we used it for our party, and there wasn’t any point of carrying back into the garage to be used as another work bench.

Kelli was concerned about a couple of pieces that she had posted that hadn’t had any interest shown. I know what she means, most stuff she posts gets bought within a couple of days but sales have dropped off this month.

I think there is more tightening of belts now that the unemployment payment has been cut.

Trump has been basking in the news that new job totals “are the best they’ve been” the reality is these aren’t new they are re-employment, and some jobs just won’t come back. There was supposed to be a new stimulus payments agreed, but that seems to have stalled, so this might be why there is not so much money about.

Larry has been preparing for his annual yard sale. From the depths of his basement he brought up boxes of crap to lay out on an assortment of tables that have probably come from the same place. The new additions this year was a rack of women’s clothes, now where did those come from? I can’t believe he has given up his cross-dressing wardrobe in order to raise a few bucks.

That will kick off tomorrow, when a procession of suspect cars will turn up and it’s inhabitants will rummage though the piles of worthless tat and leave with nothing.

I finally fixed the rain barrel in position. There was a shortening of the downpipe, and a little fancy landscaping, now we can watch all the water full up these beauties, once it starts to rain again.

22nd September 2020

It was our actual second wedding anniversary, so it was a great day to start with, we had agreed to have dinner with Mike and Lesley at our new found Indian Restaurant.

We exchanged cards, of course Kelli’s was much better than mine because she has a good way with words. Last year we were three thousand miles apart, it was a miserable time, for both of us.

The weather was good, in fact this week is the last period of pleasant temperatures for the year, so we made every opportunity to enjoy it.

I was determined to build some stock to allow me to make a start on the patio.

We completed a small dresser and dragged it inside to take pictures. Kelli was quick to post it as the last piece did not attract much interest at all. This is the first time we’ve had a slow month, considering it started out okay.

We were picked up at five, they like to have an early dinner which catches us out because we were oblivious to what the time was, and Kelli needs a sufficient time to get ready.

We navigated the roadworks, as there nearly always is on the highway, and we cursed at the motorists that flaunt the reducing lanes rule by trying to force their way in at the last minute, causing emergency braking and more often than not, minor prangs.

We passed a couple of stoves in boots and punctured radiators, and irate drivers trying to deal with it.

We got to the restaurant in good time, it is an easy place to find, and the staff always remember Lesley as she makes a big fuss over them.

We ordered our starter and main course and toasted each other with our glasses of Cabernet, now the fun begins.

21st September 2020

I had most of the day to myself. Kelli has arranged to meet Greer at Grandville to go round Plato’s Closet. Luck would have it that several bags of old clothes miraculously appeared ready for the trip, but I had other things on my mind.

There was a number of pieces that I wanted to work on to give me time later in the week to start on the patio.

There were tops to stain, a tabletop to stain and I even started on the large dresser that we picked up by the side of the road months ago.

By the time Kelli got back I had done most of the things, and I even cycled to the corner shop to buy an anniversary card.

There was no decent selection available, I was panicking at first thinking I would have to find any that I could alter, although modifying a “Sorry for your loss” would have been challenging. Eventually I found the best of a bad lot, and rode back relieved that I had something.

I stopped for some lunch and tackled a large plate of leftover potato salad, washed down with a bottle of beer. I felt good that I had reduced the container by about one per cent of its volume , another four weeks and it will be gone, then I can start on the pasta salad.

20th September 2020

We are no closer to identifying the owner of the coat. We have gone through every possible person, and very few would take a two times extra large. Some would easily fit in a sleeve, so it was easy to rule them out. Numerous phone calls later and we are still no closer.

Now it was party clean up time, I took down the lights and somehow managed to get them back into the box they came in, that was a plus. The fridge is stocked with left over food, the potato and pasta salad should last us till our next anniversary, and don’t get me started on the crisps and trail mixes. The one benefit is we have enough wine to bathe in.

We took the dogs for a walk along the beach, as there was no gate attendant on duty we thought we could drive straight through as Kelli knows the key pad combination, but it didn’t work this time after nearly ten years they changed it? What bastards.

So we had to walk instead, not a problem, but we felt a little put out, it gave us a bit of exclusivity knowing we knew more than any other plebs.

The sun was still warm enough without a coat, but the water was lapping strongly against the sand, there won’t be many other opportunities to do this without heavy coats on, hey wait, we have a large coat back home that nobody wants, sorted.

19th September 2020

Out early to buy fruit for the party, then came the cancellations, this does bother us because we gave everybody plenty of time to plan, and Kelli did a good job sending out reminders, and still we get let down. Yet again we cater for numbers and food does cost money wherever you live.

That put me in the mood to cut the grass in the front garden, so out came the hand mower.

God I hate that thing, I cursed it with every push, the grass was cut with pure hatred, and I’m surprised that it wasn’t scorched. The grass is shitty at the front which make cutting it a drag, I cannot take any pride in it, there was better grass at the Somme.

I then had to drive to Saugatuck to collect food that we had ordered from The Farmhouse Deli.

It is a popular place, which is why there is always a queue outside, but no sense of order, the queue is just people mingling, more a protest than anything orderly.

I took my place hoping to get the attention of the girl who appeared at times to take orders.

Eventually I managed it, and was allowed inside to collect the boxes and of course pay for it.

There was a ton of potato salad, pasta salad, three containers of Macaroni cheese and a load of cup cakes, then it was a careful drive back.

We arranged the seating and tables and Kelli continued to cook and prepare things.

As the magic hour struck people started to arrive.

The weather was warm to start with, but everyone was prepared for when it got colder later.

Kelli brought out the food, looking stunning in her flowing top, she wore a tiara of flowers on her head, she looked every bit a hippy princess.

I expected a stampede towards the table, but people were more protective of the drinks they had brought with them, and less about the spread laid out before them.

That is one thing I’ve noticed here, when guest bring bottles to a party, they make sure they take home what is left, weird!

I decide to lead by example, I filled my plate with everything I could stack, and also cup brimming with wine.

Slowly people took the hint, but soon it was obvious that we had made far more food than we needed. The most popular was the Mac and cheese which is the best I’ve tasted.

I had made the fatal error of choosing to buy boxes of wine instead of bottles. This was in case some of the guests had forgotten to bring anything or were too tight. It soon became obvious that they would rather die of thirst than to drink from a box. Fortunately there were a couple of guests that were so desperate that they were prepared to drink anything.

We had good music, our tandem bike for people to have pictures taken and a fire pit for later.

I had laced the wood with some mineral spirit making sure that it lit with one match.

Everyone was impressed that one strike produced a five foot flame. I did remember the possibility of instant ignition and jumped back. Therefore my reputation and my eyebrows were left intact.

Everyone had a good time, and I even got someone to give me a quote for reseeding the lawns, what a result.

I was amaze at how many people knew each other, it meant that the conversation were easy, and I didn’t have to get round and introduce everyone to everyone.

There were the hard liners who stayed to the very end, hovering around the glowing embers of the fire, that was around ten, pretty early by most people’s standards, but this is Michigan.

I set about dismantling the sound system, not exactly Glastonbury, but it pumped out some good tunes thanks to Kelli’s wedding playlist.

I’m sure the neighbourhood was rocking to the likes of Chuck Berry and the Beatles.

We did find a jacket that someone left hanging over a chair, now we have the job of finding the owner.

18th September 2020

Plenty of things to do in the back garden to get it ready for our anniversary party.

Kelli was busy in the kitchen, the smells that wafted out of the window was wonderful, it’s such a shame that we have to share any of it with others, but that’s what parties are about.

I managed to dig another border that runs beside the rear of the garage, and past the berm below the kitchen window.

There is nothing to plant yet, but it looks better than it did.

It was a day off from working in the garage, apart from sealing a couple of tops, I felt a little guilty doing very little.

We moved tables and chairs into position, and to test the quality of the beer, I flipped the top and tested it, mmmm, yes it was good, but maybe another just to be sure.