Another Lifetime to go

22nd October 2018

This was definitely a red letter day. We drove to Hudsonville with the truck full of new stuff for the booth, with trepidation of the destruction left after the weekend. We carried the new dresser in and set it in place. I brought in the two matching side tables and set them either side of a chair we had out in front. Two ladies that were wandering about stopped, and looked at them. Flippantly I asked them if they wanted me to take them straight to their car, as it would save us time dressing them. They seemed interested, and even asked if we were flexible on price. My fist tightened, “Damn cheek” I thought, however the girl on the register told them there were no deals.

I went on with my business of helping Kelli to set up the space. It was starting to look good when I popped into the back room for something, when I returned all hell was breaking loose. One of the two ladies had decided to pay the full price for the pair. This meant moving them back out and re-doing the space. Don’t get me wrong, it was a fantastic result, and the minor inconvenience of re-arranging the booth is a great problem to have.

Now the search is back on for more stuff.

On the way back we stopped off at a pre-arranged meeting with a guy trying to dispose of furniture and fittings from a store that had closed in the mall. There were a couple of old style desks for sale. We thought we might be able to convert them into more side tables, but when we looked at them they were not quite what we expected, so we walked away.

We had had lunch at the Hudsonville Winery and the “Oktoberfest” beer had kicked in. The trip around Goodwill felt a bit of a dream. I re-arranged the letters on the shelf to a word that made sense. Kelli found some bits, but otherwise there was little to get excited about.

Then we stopped off at a house that had a small end table for sale. It was small, ideal for a pigmy or one of the seven dwarfs. Kelli Hummed and hawed, and then made the error of asking me what I thought, this was difficult as I could hardly see the thing. Anyway a deal was struck, I was impressed that Kelli could peel a couple of singles from her pocket without letting on she had the full amount in there.

21st October 2018

Halloween is fast approaching, the only time that it is acceptable for children to accept sweets from strangers. Home owners turn their garden into graveyards, and hang dummies from trees.

Uncommon Grounds must have been hosting a cackling witch competition, or it might have been a coincidence that the place had been taken over by a crowd of loud laughing women most of which would scare the dead.

We took two matching bedside tables down to the bookshop to work on. Sunday is usually a quiet day, so I could work on them, while Kelli tends the register.

The painting continued into the night until both were finished. We agreed to leave the tops as the original stained finish, Phew! That saved me a lot of work sanding, and allowed me to have a normal nights sleep.

20th October 2018

Great day for selling furniture. Both the kitchen pantry and wine cabinet sold today, hurrah!

This of course left the booth in ruins, and freaking Kelli out. We had our “backlog” yesterday, but that will now have replace the sold items. This has to be a good position to be in, but we need more stuff!!

This evening is our Halloween fancy dress party, and an excuse to finish all the drinks we had left from the wedding, although the quantity has been dwindling, there is still enough left. Kelli had been cooking all afternoon, when texts started to arrive from some of the invitees making excuses why they cannot come. That made me angry, they must know the effort made by the host, and that means nothing. Kelli is too good natured to send back a sarky reply. My view is the people were important to us, so we wanted them to spend a couple of hours with us to have some fun. However it is their loss, the food will be fantastic, and we’ll be eating it for a couple of days. Those that turn up can drink more and the laughter will be much louder. Those that disappointed us can fester in their own solitary lives.

With the remaining guests, the evening started off slow. Big john brought a bottle of rum that was opened before he got through the porch. He slowly got drunker and drunker, and also louder and louder. The grip he had on the bottle was stronger than a Scotsman’s grip on a 50p coin.(apologies)

Mike arrived dressed as a convict, complete with two black balls which he waved over his head. Lesley was a bit more subtle dressed in a red dress covered in paint sample strips, which were fifty shades of grey.

Within a couple of hours we heard about john’s trip to England multiple times, as he staggered around the kitchen. I tried to explain to him the rules of cricket, but his eyes glazed over after I got to the wickets, then he said ” I’ve been to England you know”

19th October 2018

There had been some interest shown in the Kitchen pantry and the dresser at Painted Farmgirl. Kelli got the pantry put on hold, so hopefully that will go today. The person on the dresser is a returning customer who wants it painted to match the other pieces she had already bought from us. That is encouraging, but she doesn’t want it until the second week of November, so we will keep it open, and try to sell it as it is.

My coffee and scone was going down well, Uncommon Grounds was particularly quiet this morning. I sat across from two ladies talking about the benefits of flu jabs, these are available free to senior citizens (provided their insurance cover it).

There was another young lad with a Count Dracula hairstyle frantically writing notes in a small book. He sat next to his girlfriend who had either been punched in the mouth or had lip enhancements, they were big. I was prepared to help her remove the coffee cup she was drinking, should it get stuck. It is lucky that I always carry a set of tyre leavers with me at all times.

Walking back I was mesmerised by leaf blowers directing their jets to form amazing patterns with all the debris on the grass. It was almost like the leaves were dancing, not just horizontally, but also vertically. These were not tricks, they knew where to point the nozzles, and the duration of the bursts. That would make a novel act on America’s got talent.

That reminded me of a discussion that Kelli and I had the other day. The subject was men’s shampoo. It is a busy world, there is little time (and inclination) for men to stop off at various stores to purchase different cleaning materials. She suggested that there should be one available that could be used for washing their hair, the car, cleaning dishes, and animals, a sort of multi-use soap. So “Pete’s manpoo” came into being. The home would never be without a cleaner at hand. Okay the formula might render the user as bald as a coot, but it would be a small price to pay for connivence.

18th October 2018

Kelli’s allergies persist, sneezing and nose blowing is almost constant, I feel for her. It doesn’t help working in the garage with all the sawdust about. We had set ourselves a deadline to complete the two dressers, and were well on the way. Kelli wanted new knobs for the piece I was finishing. My heart sank.

Searching for knobs drains me, on my level of interest it falls below watching dogs taking a dump, but I tolerate it. We also had to drive to Hudsonville to take the wine cabinet and bring back a dresser that had been there for ages. It happens like that sometimes, a piece fails to stir the imagination of customers. This particular piece has a roll front top, which is a design that is difficult to move. As Kelli had experience in retail she always likes to keep her space fresh, and it often works. Sometimes just repainted can make the difference, alternatively for the hardened “tight asses” lowering the price also works.

We stopped off at Hobby Lobby to look for the dreaded knobs. It was fifty percent off day, which didn’t excite me as much as it did Kelli.

Rack after rack, knob after knob the search was on. My mind wandering in and out thinking about dogs, and remaining enthusiastic. There was nothing suitable in the quantity we needed.

Then we spotted the “clearance” shelf. The joy level went up, (just joking, more dogs). Scratching through the racks of knobs that time forgot, various combinations were laid out, I scoured at anyone who tried to bring a trolley down the isle we had sat down in, and continued to set out knob combinations like we were playing some Chinese board game.Eventually we settled on a combination that would work, and we headed for the checkout. Kelli also had the good idea to buy other cool knobs that she could sell on, alway thinking, that why I married her.

17th October 2018

The first cup of coffee went down well, propelling me out in the garage to tackle the ever growing backlog. I carried on making legs for the radio cabinet, I figured that would give me the inspiration I need to turn it into something desirable. I had some old oak legs that came from an old coffee table that I started modifying. As the saw cut its way through there was the sound and feel of something metal buried deep in the timber. This is the problem I face often using reclaimed wood. To locate the offending obstacle I had to cut around the area the metal item was, and chip it away with a chisel. There it was a bloody screw that had sheared off at sometimes in the table’s life. This was repeated on all the other legs, but I was able to make up a leg structure to give the radio cabinet some height.

Whilst I was working on these, Kelli and Greer had to go to the bank. ” I won’t be long” were Kelli’s words as she pulled out on to the road. I carried on working on the legs lost in thought and frustration with the hidden screws.

A couple of hours went by, I went into the kitchen for a break, and realised how long the girls had been away. I thought it was a local bank they went too, not one in another state, but I had a lot of things to do anyway. Eventually they pulled up in the driveway. Out they came with some bags of provisions, and proceeded to start working on preparing food. I sat in the kitchen for a while longer and Kelli went back to the truck, still not suspicious of anything, I carried on minding my own business when Kelli staggered back in with a red two door cabinet. Then things fell into place, she had been on a mission. “Have you been to Goodwill again” smiling as I said it, “No” was the reply. Kelli had found the piece on Marketplace the evening before, and picked it up, hence the time away. ” That looks good, we should get a good price for it” I said enthusiastically. I should have known Kelli had a different agenda, she was gripping it so hard, it would have been impossible to prize he fingers off. “I want to keep it” she said sheepishly “You say that about everything we work on, where will you put it?” If eye rolls were noisy then it would be deafening. So very quickly an old table was replaced with the new addition.

As it to pacify me she placed a bowl of hot soup and a piece of Italian bread under my nose, I immediately forgot the last few minutes, and enjoy the meal. Kelli knows the way to distracting her man, it is to put food under his nose.

The wine cabinet was finally posted on Marketplace, now we wait for someone in Holland (who has a real drinking problem) to beat a trail to our door. I doubt if we will get any interest from anyone in Zeeland.

16th October 2018

This has to be a work day. There are so many projects stacked up in the garage we need to finish something. It dwells in my head all the time, some require a lot of effort, like a major re-construction or modification. The radio cabinet is taking a lot of time as I don’t have a proper idea of what it’s going to be yet. It is like trying to write a novel without a plot. It may be just a block that I’m going through, but I’m happy that we didn’t pay anything for it, but it deserves something special.

Kelli had found a pair of side tables on Marketplace, not far away, for a reasonable price, so off we went. Outside the house was a large skip, I joked that it looked like “Dad” had popped his clogs, and his stuff was being cleaned out, I was close, it was the mother. Kelli felt bad, something about bad Karma, Yes, it’s not a pleasant thing, but we will give it a new purpose, and someone else will love them.

Kelli’s job was to paint the wine cabinet, so instead she decided to clear out her closet. Every year she sorts through her vast collection of seasonal clothes moving the summer things into storage, and replacing them with her Autumn collection. The bottom line is, the closet is still as full as ever. I keep popping in to the kitchen to check on progress of the cabinet, only to see more clothes stacked on the bed. I smile to myself, I convince her that I’m not checking up on her, well I am, but I understand her priorities, and I know she will get to it eventually.

Well she got to it eventually.

15th October 2018

Two slices of burnt toast hit the sink, it’s Monday and there is a lot going on. Kelli has an allergy problem, so is sneezing a lot. The internet was down, there was no more bread, things couldn’t get much worse.

We had the two side tables to deliver which had money at the end of it, so a glimmer of light to improve the day.

When we got to Hudsonville, Kelli decided to change the whole booth. This meant moving everything around. It was a mess, and as her nose was constantly running it was not the best day to undertake this mammoth task.

There are some vendors at Painted Farmgirl who do not make stuff, they buy in ready made products and re-sell. This, in Kelli opinion is in conflict with the ethos of the place. These people do not need the money, it is a hobby for them, and it steals from those who make craft their livelihood.

There is a place for mass produced farmhouse style furniture, but that’s Pottery Barn, Crate and Barrel and World Market, not Painted Farmgirl.

I’m sure after a few beers I could drag all that stuff into the car park and set light to it, but Kelli won’t let me, and besides I can never find a box of matches when I need them.

14th October 2018

Cottons have been replaced by flannel, the sun is out and the coffee shop is bursting. There is a new wave of visitors to Saugatuck that come to look at the colour of autumn. It is the last wild throws of life before the town goes into hibernation. Autumn comes with its own character, of crisp mornings, wood smoke, golden trees, and then leaves, thousands of them. I’m not the “blow them next door” kind of person, I like the tedium of sweeping each one up into small piles at the side of the road awaiting the man from the city to come a collect them. This usually occurs a few days after the high winds have blown all the leaves back from where they came. This is certainly a job creation program and a half.

We finally finished the side tables, and loaded them into the truck ready for delivery on our way to Hudsonville tomorrow.

I had some good news from Andy that all the plastering in the cottage has been finished. Now I don’t have to rely on anyone else to do work for me, it’s now down to me, it’s been a long journey.

13th October 2018

The sun was shining so it wasn’t that cold, but Kelli found my work coat that had been hidden away deep in her closet, to keep me warm as I slaved away in the garage.

The pressure was on to get the side tables finished for Monday. Yes, the pressure is on me to make the tops, as all the painting has been done. The endless sanding required to remove the painted wood grain made my fingers sore and filled the air with dust, but the reward was to see the good wood re-emerge.

Kelli had to drive to Zeeland to pick up another dresser, but first we had to off-load a wine cabinet that we picked up last night. The lady was so pleased to see us that we were given a complete tour of the house she just decorated.

We are building up a bit of stock, and space in the garage is limited. We need to finish the French provincial style dresser, so another of my jobs was to stain all the drawer fronts.

Kelli set off, I did not expect her to be back for a long while. There are too many distractions for her, and usually I am the voice of reason and try to moderate her appetite for buying everything she sees. Sure enough, when she returned the truck was filled with stuff from goodwill. I often stand in secret admiration of what she can do with a few ordinary objects. In the wine cabinet there were some beer mats. These disappeared, and then re-appeared with a price tag on them. That’s my girl.