Another Lifetime to go

15th November 2019

I started to sand the unit we got from Goodwill the other day. I had already stripped the top, but the carcass was painted dark blue. Very soon I was covered in blue dust. It took ages to get it all ready for painting. This was not my finest hour, I looked like a character from the film “Avatar”.

I turned on the work lights that I bought yesterday. We needed more light to work with and this seemed the best option. Switching them on flooded the garage with 500 watts of white light, now we can get a tan whilst we work.

14th November 2019

The one thing we had to do today was to pick up a dresser from our space at Our Collected Home. This had been there a long time, but we thought it had sold earlier in the month only to be told that the buyer didn’t like the hole in the top. It had been used as a TV stand, hence the hole was for cables.

We took the decision to fill the hole, and then repaint it.

It’s been a slow build up, since I got back. There is plenty of things to work on, but it’s sometimes hard to get motivated.

Sales for October was pretty crap and there is a slow start for November. This is usually a good month for furniture, so I need to get my finger out.

Even a trip to Aldi didn’t excite me, there are limited opportunities for fun, often at other people’s expense. It’s the people hogging the cabinet with the hash browns. They stand there blocking the door whilst I dance about trying to gain access. I have thought about ramming into their cart, I have even considered grabbing their cart and sending down the isle both of which would probably get me banned from the store.

13th November 2019

I was left to my own devices as Kelli had to do her flower delivery job. I had more sanding to do on a re-paint job. Firstly I had to move the piece out of the stock pile in order to work on it. This entailed moving other things out of the way. First there was a small bookcase that smelt like piss, not sure where this came from, possibly a public convenience. The next item was a dresser with no drawers. How do you lose four drawers? they’re bloody large wooden boxes, not the sort of things that fall down a crack in the floor, well not four of them. It intrigues me to think what I will be able to do with it.

We dragged the Goodwill find from yesterday into the garage, and Kelli left.

There was a dresser that we finished the night before that we had photographed that I needed to finish so that it could go on Marketplace.

I set about sanding the top of the re-paint piece. Two hours later it was stripped, and all I had to show was a sore arm and a pile of debris.

12th November 2019

We had another eight inches of snow overnight, so with a customer due to look at the latest dresser that Kelli had listed on Marketplace I thought I would make a start on clearing the driveway.

We are not so prepared as the rest of the people in the road with snow clearing equipment. Kelli has an electric snow shovel that is the equivalent of a Fred Flintstone appliance. Using it feels like I’m vacuuming the ground, but it was better than nothing.

The person who came to look at the dresser agreed to buy it, but we had to deliver it later in the afternoon.

The delivery went okay, the dresser was large and awkward, I got a cramp wrestling the beast out of the truck, much to the amusement of the buyer. Then it was up some steps and through a door. This was more exhausting than doing the entire restoration of the piece.

We stopped off at Goodwill and managed to grab a small unit, so the backlog is maintained.

11th November 2019

There was about four inches of snow on the ground when we awoke, this was early, and maybe an indication of the winter to come.

We had some jobs to do in the garage, I had a lot of sanding and Kelli had to make some finishing touches to a dresser.

For once my fingers were not cold, the insulation seems to be working well, therefore working out there would not be hell on a stick. I managed to finish a prototype “PooStick” a device to mark the dog shite in the garden. What is unique with the design is that the poo is protected by a roof to stop the rain making it all mushy and difficult to scoop up.

I heard the tragic news of the passing of one of most charismatic people in Herman Miller.

Peter Lloyd was part of my generation during the most exciting time in the company’s growing UK business period.

He was alway a good sounding board for me during the development of new products, as his depth of knowledge was amazing.

9th November 2019

Party cleaning day, alway the anticlimax, but lots of messages from people saying they enjoyed the evening, including the British guy dancing with a flat queen.

I thanked Kelli for putting that out there, so my credibility as the debonair Englishman has gone up in smoke.

I completed the clearing of the leaves, and fitted the A/C fan protector, which is just in time as more snow is predicted.

The dogs haven’t got used to the second sliding glass door to the sunroom. They are so eager to chase the squirrels that the moment the first door is open they “splat” into the second one. By now they should have flat faces, but they never learn.

We ventured out to get some supplies, and I needed a lopper to cut up all the broken branches that need to be cleared.

I am impressed by how the house stays so warm, it’s great to walk in after a stroll outside. All it needs is a pan of hot soup on the cooker to make the scene complete.

Our dinner consisted of left-overs from the party which still tasted great. It is often the case that the foods are not “tasted” properly, because of all the distractions, so left-overs always taste better.

8th November 2019

We collected all the food for our party from The Farmhouse Deli in Douglas. It was a variety of salad dishes, and three tubs of the finest macaroni cheese in the whole world.

I couldn’t wait for the party to start.

Kelli had everything in hand, whilst I swept the fresh drop of leaves in the front garden.

The party was due to start at 6.00pm which is an unusually early time, but bearing in mind most people here are in bed by 10.00pm it was appropriate.

We had catered for about thirty people, hoping that they brought a bottle with them as instructed, as our feeble choice of booze was limited.

The first people arrived, so soon the place was starting to buzz. Kelli took a phone call from someone wanting to buy a TV stand that she had posted on Marketplace. They wanted to collect it within the hour, and Kelli explained to them that we were having a party, and if they brought a bottle they could join the festivities.

Well, the lady arrived to pick up the furniture with a bottle of wine in her hand, which she handed over with the money, but she declined the offer to join the party.

That was the weirdest thing, we got a bottle of wine from someone buying furniture from us, we should do that more often.

We never got round to opening the bottle, maybe it’s one that gets handed around from party to party and never gets uncorked.

By now the party was in full swing, Kelli, suitably lubricated with a couple of glasses of wine was dancing wildly with a couple of her friends, also well intoxicated. I remember from the wedding that the floor show was something people usually pay money for, and this was no exception. I mingled with our guests keeping a low profile, occasionally raiding my secret stash of beer.

Then it was the downing of the “ Fireballs” small bottles of whisky mixed with cinnamon. Kelli’s friends quickly swigged those down, suddenly the entertainment was turned up to “11”, and although Kelli was reluctant to drink the liquid, she was shamed into it.

Now apart from just dancing to the music she was singing at the top of her voice.

The food was disappearing, so I jumped in and grabbed a plateful, it was good stuff, the only meat available was two pieces of poached salmon (which was delicious) this was the token meat dish available, but everyone enjoyed the vegan feast.

By 11.00 the last guests left, taking the remains of the bottles they turned up with.

That is so un-party like, but I guess I should get used to the strange habits of Americans.

We looked at the apocalyptic scene in the kitchen, empty bottles stacked in the sink, and most of the food gone, we felt exhausted, Kelli’s voice was faint, I just wanted to sit down an chill.

However, there is video evidence that I was dancing with a cardboard cut-out of the Queen, she was not amused.

We had over twenty people turn up, and they had a great time, I met some new friends, but I’m not sure if we will have a party like that again soon.

7th November 2019

There was more snow on the ground, the cold snap was causing the leaves to fall even without a breeze.

Kelli noticed a damp patch on the floor in the furnace room. There was drips of water dripping from a crack in the plastic casing.

Kelli made a call to the maintenance company noted on the furnace cover, whilst I went on-line to investigate the problem.

Everything seems bad when you don’t know the cause. Was it the heat exchanger, would we need a new boiler? I went down every worm hole trying to reassure myself that it wasn’t serious.

The furnace was a high efficiency model which created a lot of condensation and that was what I was seeing. There was a part that collected the water before piping it to the ground. The plastic tank had a crack in it, so I placed a dish under to collect as much water as I could and waited for the repairs man to arrive.

Eventually a van turned up and I explained the problem. He shone his torch on the dripping area fiddling with the pipes causing the damaged area to break off. Now instead of a small crack there was a bloody big hole.

He explained that it had been repaired before, and it needed a new part.

What were the chances of that?

There were alternative places to connect the pipes to drain the water, but the large hole needed to be filled.

He went off in search of some epoxy putty whilst I worked on some furniture bits in the garage.

He returned with some material that is mixed together in the hand and then applied to the part to fill the hole.

His boss was trying to find a replacement part, but in the meantime the temporary patch would stop the leak.

He advised me to wait about three hours until the putty had fully cured before turning on the furnace back on.

After the allotted time I switched in on, nothing happened. The pilot would try to ignite the gas but the furnace would not fire up. I read all about possible causes and was fully up to speed on lock-outs but I could not figure out what was wrong.

Kelli was poised to call the guy out again, I went through the start up process again just to make sure I hadn’t forgotten something.

Still no success, so the engineer was summoned again.

The same guy turned up again, he resumed the position on the floor in front of the furnace wiggling things and muttering into his phone. I didn’t stand over him, I just left him to it. After half an hour or so the boiler burst into life. He had to fit a pipe into the area he had filled earlier as it had something to do with pressure sensors or something or other. Anyway the system was working again, so hurray for that.

Just before bedtime, I checked the repair again, there was a drip coming from the pipe he had just fitted. He had left some of the putty, so I will look at it again in the morning.

6th November 2019

Snow was falling as my eyes flickered open, not heavy, but leaving a dusting of white on the newly fallen leaves.

I continued my work in the garage. The insulated walls and ceiling was a vast improvement over the last place where even my breath froze.

Kelli had to go to Saugatuck leaving me alone to amuse myself. I had the second shed door to work on so I was set.

Later I walked up the Dave and Georgia’s house. This was the first time I had visited them since I arrived. They were having their continued health issues, which had caused concerns for Kelli, as their frequent requests/demands conflicted with the difficult situation I had put on her shoulders.

It was a awkward visit, they were a bit frosty to me, the house that once rang with laughter and fun, now had none.

Dave has given up hope, and refuses to seek medical help with his legs, and it is only a matter of time before his whole body is poisoned.

Both Kelli and I have talked at great length about the situation, but we are unable to determine the best way forward. I believe in speaking my mind, but Kelli’s family culture does not include talking openly about personal matters. Which means there is no way of expressing the frustration at Dave for not wanting help for his condition, and also Georgia‘s irregular heartbeat.

There has to be an end to this impasse, but like the weather it’s going to get icy.

5th November 2019

We invited Mike and Lesley, our English friends for a Guy Fawkes dinner at the Black Sheep restaurant just along the road from our house on South Shore Drive. There wasn’t enough time to organise bonfire and fireworks, so this seemed the next best thing. The wine flowed a little to easily, which meant that sleep took hold very quickly, and I missed the end of the programme I started to watch.

Several hours later I awoke, my neck stiff from being in an un-natural position for so long. I looked across at Kelli who had also fallen asleep. To anyone looking in from outside, the two of us, fixed in our strange poses, must have looked like victims of a crime scene.