Another Lifetime to go

14th August 2022

A trip out to deliver a dresser in Zeeland, and then on to collect a desk from Grand Rapids was the order of the day.

Now there are some beautiful areas of the city, many old factory buildings have been tastefully renovated and are jewels sitting in amongst the glass and steel landscape of modern GR.

Then there are the places we buy stuff from.

These areas I insist on leaving the engine running just in case.

The desk was sitting on the back porch, it didn’t look too bad, from a distance, but it had seen better days when I loaded it into the truck. I never understand how furniture can get in that condition. The conclusion I have come to is, they are often used to barricade the front door, or used as a battering ram.

On the journey back I was trying to figure out how I can repair the fluted detail.

I took the desk apart as soon as we got back, as we have a potential buyer lined up I wanted to make a start.

Once the pedestals were separated there were pieces of the fluted detail left over, so I should be able to insert pieces into the damaged areas, a great relief.

13th August 2022

“I couldn’t sleep because I was thinking about the dresser that’s being picked up at 1.00pm”

Kelli said.

“ why were you thinking about that?” Was my blurry eyed response.

“ Its the crack that I filled in the drawer front, I can still see it, and I’m not happy with it.”

So started a few frantic hours of rework to the faulty drawer front.

I got hold of my orbital sander and started to try to blend the surfaces. The problem was the levels were different, so sanding certainly helped.

Kelli then mixed up some paint and resprayed the front. After it had dried, we could still see the area that had been sanded. We weren’t sure if it was because there was no primer underneath or the tannins in the wood soaking through, regardless, it needed to be fixed.

I covered the area with a shellac sealer, and waited for that to dry. The use of a hairdryer was drafted into use to speed up the drying.

Then came more coats of paint and more forced drying, still the area was visible.

We had about an hour left, as I applied more paint, gradually the finished improved to the point of “ Stop! That’s it, get it dry”.

The buyer arrived with her son, a tall chap who didn’t really didn’t enjoy the one hour drive.

Apparently it was for him, he mother asked him if he liked it, and he just managed to utter a positive response.

I helped load it into the back of their vehicle, and they were off, another satisfied customer.

The day was full of rain with the temperature plunging to long sleeve wearing levels.

We off-loaded one of the pieces we picked up yesterday so Kelli has something to work on tomorrow.

12th August 2022

We had to deliver a dresser that had been purchased a week ago. The elderly couple didn’t have the strength or the vehicle to handle the piece. We not only delivered, but also carried it through the maze of their house.

The husband tried to offer some assistance only to be reminded by his wife that he had a bad back. After some careful manipulation we placed it into the spare bedroom. I had the impression that the husband was not keen on getting more furniture. There had been talk about us painting a bookcase for her, but that quickly changed to “ Would you like this to take away and sell?” When we offered to paint it for them, he intervened saying that they had too much furniture all ready.

We felt obliged to take it, it wasn’t that good quality, but with a splash of paint and some shelves it could be okay.

So we loaded it into the truck and headed off to the other side of town to collect another piece. This was also quite ordinary but will be transformed into something better.

We finished off the two dressers in the garage, and took pictures and Kelli posted them on Marketplace.

I treated the front lawn with an organic fertiliser as part of the treatment program I joined, I must say I’m not that impressed with the system, but I’ll give it a couple of years and see what happens.

12th August 2022

We had to deliver a dresser that had been purchased a week ago. The elderly couple didn’t have the strength or the vehicle to handle the piece. We not only delivered, but also carried it through the maze of their house.

The husband tried to offer some assistance only to be reminded by his wife that he had a bad back. After some careful manipulation we placed it into the spare bedroom. I had the impression that the husband was not keen on getting more furniture. There had been talk about us painting a bookcase for her, but that quickly changed to “ Would you like this to take away and sell?” When we offered to paint it for them, he intervened saying that they had too much furniture all ready.

We felt obliged to take it, it wasn’t that good quality, but with a splash of paint and some shelves it could be okay.

So we loaded it into the truck and headed off to the other side of town to collect another piece. This was also quite ordinary but will be transformed into something better.

We finished off the two dressers in the garage, and took pictures and Kelli posted them on Marketplace.

I treated the front lawn with an organic fertiliser as part of the treatment program I joined, I must say I’m not that impressed with the system, but I’ll give it a couple of years and see what happens.

11th August 2022

We ploughed on with the two dressers that were started yesterday.

We managed to sell the long dresser to a couple who came to collect it in the evening.

I had to machine a couple of replacement drawer guides and re-glue a couple of drawers, but that was it.

We managed to squeeze in a bike ride and a float around the pool.

A big truck arrived with two burly men to load it, they picked it up like it weighed nothing at all, but we were happy that they were happy, and a bit more money in the bank.

10th August 2022

We delivered the small dresser to one of our regular customers this morning, always a good start of the day. Then we stopped off at Goodwill just to see if they had anything that we could transform. There was the usual array of junk and crap furniture, but hidden amongst all that were two Equa sled base chairs priced at five dollars each.

They were in good clean condition and would require just a wipe down to resell. If we could get thirty each for them for no work it would be worth it. We have found other Miller products before in various thrift stores and sold them very quickly, so it will be interesting to see if it happens with these.

Kelli finally got an appointment for Dhama to see a vet. She had been limping on her right back leg for a couple of weeks, but to get an appointment has been difficult. The only option was to call when the surgery opened at eight in the morning. It was a small window of opportunity that we were lucky to grab.

The vet twisted and felt around Dhama’s back legs for any signs of arthritis, but nothing seemed wrong, so instead we walked out with some anti-inflammatory tablets and a sizeable bill for our troubles.

We were instructed to stop her trying to jump up, and down from places in case she had damaged a muscle, so whilst we were out Kelli picked up a dog step that she had advertised for on a local site, and someone responded.

Now all we have to do is get her to use the blooming thing.

9th August 2022

With the humidity down, out came the bikes, it was time to hit the road again.

It was great giving my leg muscles a work out without the battery help that Kelli uses all the time.

We rode past the lake on the Heinz broadwalk down to the park, did a quick circle then rode back. It was short, but it was good exercise.

Kelli had spent over an hour waiting to speak to someone from the inland revenue. She had a question over the amount of tax refund she received being a lot less than she thought.

The answer was down to the stimulus payment she had received last year. Apparently that money was an advance against the following years tax refund. I guess that was why there was an hours wait on the phone.

I did another coat of white paint on the latest dresser, whilst Kelli sold the small dresser posted yesterday.

I managed to repair two damaged drawers and made two side panels for the composter, so I was quite pleased with myself.

My hacking cough is still with me, I really sound like an old fart, I can’t wait for that to be gone.

8th July 2022

Living in the US has taught me a lot. When I first came over in 1986 everything was wrapped in a halo of perfection. Everything seemed wonderful, my stay at Marigold Lodge with its original Nelson furniture was inspiring.

The grounds, bordering Lake Macatawa were beautifully manicured, the grass cut to very close tolerances.

Subsequent visits, after the Design Yard was built, showed attention to every detail, a perfect place to work.

But over the following years I noticed the flaws, the rotting window frames and the flaky paint. Of course the interiors were perfect, but it was all part of an image. This I leaned is how things are over here, a veneer covering the real picture. Houses that have seen better days are hidden by overgrown gardens. Front porches that should be great social spaces are full of rubbish, other places look vacant. I am fortunate to live in a respectable area, but I am always aware that I want the place to be better. I try to keep the grass long, but cut often, the wild flower garden looks great at the moment because everything is in full bloom, but come the autumn the area will look quite different, and the challenge will be to make make it acceptable.

7th August 2022

The predicted storm and rain was pathetic, I was excited to get the garden soaked maybe even saving the grass. There was a sprinkle of moisture and that was it. I raised my fists to the heavens, it made no difference.

There were a few jobs to a dresser that we had already posted. I was concerned about a smell inside, the carcass was made from cedar, but this was not what it smelt of.

There was a lot of heat gun action trying to extract any essence from the timber, and a lot of sanding. The finishing touch was a coat of beeswax that I applied into the grain with a stiff brush.

It was a great improvement, not perfect, if I had noticed it before, I wouldn’t have taken it, a lesson for the future.

Kelli was keen to get at least one coat of final coat on a large dresser, that we agreed we’d paid too much for, but it will be okay, and we should get a good price for it.

On a completely different subject, we were both shocked at the size of one of the daughters of the family that live across the road. Both the mother and father are on the large size, so it seems inevitably that the children with have little choice. Cheap food is evil laced with sugar and corn syrup young Americans are doomed. As a late night TV host noted “You never see a ninety year old fat person” of course he meant that all of them would be dead.

6th August 2022

It’s still bloody hot! I know I shouldn’t complain, but it’s drying out my new grass and I can’t keep up with the watering. There is old grass growing through the turf that is resilient to the drought, and I hope it spreads quickly.

We had to go and collect a dresser this morning, it took a bit of organisation to align timelines but today the stars were in alignment.

It was in pretty good condition apart from a few of the drawers, but nothing too serious.

We decided to have lunch out at our favourite cafe, a veggie panini easily slipped down my throat.

We used the excuse to jump into the pool, the water was warm, but a lot more refreshing than the perspiration beads that were running down my back.

We floated on our inflatables in endless circles watching the butterflies and the sparrows constantly grabbing seeds, but there was no rush to get back to work.