Author: peterb51

24th November 2023

What a change, no getting up early, rushing about and driving to Henry’s. My body is still suffering, it’s only when you stop you notice that every joint is capable of hurting at the same time.

But it was shop day, pulling together food required for thanksgiving. Fortunately the hoards were not grabbing everything off the shelves. 

This, and Christmas is always a chance to overindulge, often to be regretted, but this time it should be a bit more tolerable.

We had to go to Kelli’s bank to set up a new account as her’s had been compromised. The bank informed her of some unusual activity, so she had to go through the inconvenience of a new account and debit card. This ate into the available time I had to do things in the garage.

I had to fit handles to a long dresser that Kelli had been working on. Normally it’s a simple task, but the screws had to be cut down, then they didn’t match the threads. My only option was to re tap the handles which solved the problem.

23rd November 2025

It was a beautiful morning, bright sunshine welcomed me as I headed to Henry’s for the last time. Kelli is not so happy as she has to get up a little earlier, and it confuses the dogs.

I think I confused Henry, as he looked as if he had just got out of bed. I get the impression that they sleep in the basement, as I’m working on the bedrooms, and they definitely aren’t in those.

I had two additional doorways to trim, a bit of skirting to fit, plus the sanding and caulking still to do.

I plodded away while Henry said he had cleaning to do because his boys were visiting for thanksgiving. I’m not sure what cleaning he meant, it looks like a bomb has exploded everywhere. They still have a lot of stuff from the house they sold in East Lansing, but I wished him luck and got on with my tasks.

I bloody hate caulking, that stuff gets everywhere, even taking the pressure off, still allows a spurt of crap to shoot out. My fingers were covered, the floor got covered, although I did get pretty good by the end of the three rooms.

The last job of the day was to “help” fit a frame to an inset cupboard, I’m not sure if Henry is practical in any sense, art wise he is creative, but from any other aspect he is not.

As I was leaving he asked me to come back to “help” him put the shelves up in the closets, but that would be after the painters had done their business.

Driving along the wooded drive, there are a row of chairs in a line between the trees, I’ve meant to ask him what that means. My interpretation is that he likes people, but wants to keep them at a distance, if that’s the case, I’m fortunate to be let in.

22nd November 2025

I was really hoping to finish today at Henry’s, it was day seven, and I’m still not finished yet.

I had to use up most of my offcuts on unseen areas, splicing them together, I was pleased how they turned out.

There was some activity outside with the return of the roofers to fix the possible leak problem. The plasterer also showed up to sand the wall.

Later a painter Henry had found came to look around and give a quote. Henry, being Spanish spoke in his native tongue to the Mexican chap, obviously laying out his expectations.

I was rushing around like a scalded cat, but in the end I succumbed to exhaustion.

I still have the filling to sand and the caulking to do, but he agreed that I should return tomorrow.

21st November 2025

Another day older, I was back for day six at Henry’s.

I’m hoping that this was to be the last full day, but very soon I realised it was not.

There were so many areas that have to be resolved where the plasterboard was thicker than the door frame, and working inside a closet is not my idea of fun, I can see now why so many have come out of it.

There was an issue with one of the new windows leaking. The plasterer blamed the window fitters for ruining his drywall joint, the window fitter blamed the roof man, I’m waiting to hear if I get the blame for everything.

I plodded on, kneeling, getting up, searching for a pencil, looking for the tape measure, and on.

I think I must have wasted a day looking for stuff.

But when I left, I felt that one more day and it should be done.

As I was driving back to civilisation through the wooded road, I was met with a long trailer reversing towards me, as I was three quarters of the way along I wasn’t sure who was going to concede. 

In the end it was me, the man in the truck was a roofer and he was very large. Reversing back along a road I was unfamiliar with, in the dark was not a very exciting experience, but I did it.

I pulled into a wider space to let the trailer pass, no thanks from the driver, I cussed him and continued on my attempt to leave.

No further trouble ensued, I drove back to Holland stopping off at Aldi for some things we needed. By the time I got back I was exhausted, I hardly had the strength to take the cap off a bottle of beer.

20th November 2025

Day 5 at Henry’s, and more knee pain, endless miles walking back and forth trying to find the pencil that I left in a different room.

Yes more of the same.

I think I am catching up on my schedule, I estimate another two days to complete, but don’t hold me to that.

The guy who due to paint the rooms won’t be coming yet, he’s doing another job, so they won’t be ready for thanksgiving. 

The plasterer returned to redo one of the walls that had a ridge running across the middle.

It was him that discovered a leak around one of the new windows, Henry was not pleased about that.l

Today was my birthday, Kelli made me a bag/ cover for my saws, I have wanted one for a long time, and she made me an apple strudel, my day was complete.

19th November 2025 

Day 4 at Henry’s, and nowhere near finished.

I’m getting used to the journey, it’s like being back at work again. 

There is a quiet road where I can get up some speed, I can get to his house in fifteen minutes (it’s usually twenty six )

I know my way around, and what surprises me is none of the doors are locked, and he doesn’t even care about it. To him, it’s another thing he would have to think about.

He is definitely eccentric, and it’s true, some artists seem to live in a perpetual state of chaos.

He shares the studio with his son, who I haven’t yet met, who is also an artist, there are many large canvas’s which look unfinished, in fact I don’t think I have seen any that are. Maybe he gets bored, and looses interest, then starts another.

It’s all very different from how I imagined living the life of an artist.

He has a very dry sense of humour, and I have to listen very carefully or I would miss it.

I managed to get a lot done, but I feel I have two, possibly three days left, and I haven’t been slacking.

I helped him make a frame for a built in cupboard, and showed him the magic of pocket screws to hold it all together. He was impressed, as he could see the frame coming together.

I left him busily sanding, I guess I’ll be helping to fix it to the wall tomorrow.

18th November 2025

Day 3 at Henry’s.

More punishing leg activity today, I notice it when I get out of bed in the morning, but it somehow is not noticeable when I’m working.

I changed the blade in the chop saw, it now has a full set of teeth.

I had to use his battery operated table saw, that thing needs a new blade, it burns the wood instead of cutting it.

Henry is scared of that saw, he showed me the scar on his arm where the piece of wood he was cutting kicked back and tore the skin up his wrist. It was more than four inches long, enough to make me feel faint.

I think before I leave I will put the dividing knife and blade guard on.

Sometimes little knowledge can be dangerous.

I made a bit more progress, but the door frames need shims to bring the out to where the plasterboard is, that takes time to get that right, sometimes having to cut the board back.

Fortunately Henry doesn’t stand over me, he was too busy with someone from the arts council  coming to look over his work for a possible exhibition. Some of his creations are a little out there, conceptual art is probably the description.

His studio is bigger than most small factories.

What I could do in there, Kelli would never see me again.

17th November 2025

Chem trails? What are they for? I don’t get it.

There are people that are behind this, what is the purpose, where is the financial gain, or are they just sick bastards.

There are people flying these aircraft, what kind of low life can do this? They then go to their homes kiss their wives and hug their children.

“ What did you do today daddy?”

“Well, I flew around the sky spraying chemicals that would land on people and make them sick”

Is there someone trying to play god? Are all the governments in on this? 

Maybe America is leading the way of pumping shit in the sky, but I think Europe isn’t far behind.

What is happening to us? I believe that the old and the sick are targets because we are a drain on the country. The countries would have more money to spend on other things if it wasn’t for the sick and the old.

Covid was a good start, kill off the weak first, then get everyone vaccinated with a poison that will shorted their lives, it’s all coming out.

Everything we are told has been lies.

I read that in 1933 there were a total of thirteen million Jews living in Europe, in 1945 there were still thirteen million, so where were the six million murdered in the camps?

I tell you, turn over another stone and there is another story waiting to blow your mind.

There was a James Bond film where the villain was head of a media empire, and they manufactured the news, that’s what happening today.

Wow you can tell that nothing much happened today, apart from shopping.

I have a different view on things these days, I’ve always been sceptical about most things, but I have taken it to a new level.

The bible, to me was a book of stories, but now I see that it was created as a document of control.

We are reading The Story of Enoch, one of the books not included in the bible, and there is some crazy shit going on in that.

I’m back up at Henry’s tomorrow, that should tame me, and prevent me from sending me off on a rant, but if anyone can make any sense of why chemicals are being sprayed into the sky, tell me.

16th November 2025

Day 2 at Henry’s.

Boy! my joints hurt this morning, I feel like an old wooden boat creaking with the incoming tide.

It was definitely colder today, the big lake had stormy waves and the wind blowing off from it chilled the bones.

I picked up where I left off. I had my list, but that became irrelevant when Henry wanted me to concentrate on the landing, not quite sure why, but I managed to work that in with my main plan.

I managed to get all the skirting nailed and filled.

It is strange, when the pieces are cut, they slide together perfectly, but the moment I fix them, a gap appears, it’s like I’m knocking the side of the building apart. 

But that was a move forward, I will probably give my trip to John the wood’s a miss for this week, just to keep the momentum going, it is definitely going to be a six day or possibly seven to get everything finished.

15th November 2025

It was day one at Henry’s, there were reservations about doing the job in the first place, because I am not quick when it comes to doing skirting boards or door trim. I look at it as a piece of furniture, and that deserves care, and attention to detail.

So with my tools, I headed off towards West Olive. The drive was through some of the most beautiful  golden maple trees that the wind has not stripped. It was a thirty minute drive, ending up a narrow wooded lane that opened out to the view across Lake Michigan, it is a million dollar sight.

Henry had primed all the timber, but at sixteen feet the pieces were difficult to manage, but we found a way of getting them up to the first bedroom.

I was using his chop saw, that was interesting, there were teeth missing, it was out of square with the fence and not perpendicular to the bed.

Therefore my first job was to adjust those. There wasn’t much I could do with the missing teeth, so I made the best with what there was.

The oak flooring had been sanded, and looked great, but where some of the strips had been covered by a thick skirting, and a quarter round, which I personally hate, some had been cut short, and would show under the new trim.

That will have to be dealt with when I was ready to fit the new skirting.

All the walls had been re plasterboarded and remarkably square.

The main task was to bond a small strip on to the main board, I thought that was easier than effectively doing the job twice. This extra piece was to cover up the majority of badly trimmed oak flooring strips.

Well I didn’t finish the first room, I now think it will take two days a room, as I gave Henry a daily rate, it will mean extra cash.

He wants to get the rooms finished for thanksgiving, I’m not sure that will be possible, because the floors need to be sanded and another coat, or possible two applied, and the walls and ceiling have to be painted as well.

I will work towards getting my bit finished by the end of next week, then I will have to give my joints a good rest.

As I left, the sun was floating on the lake, it was amazing sight.