Sunday

Every morning, I pack three cartons of books and we haul them to the farmhouse. Three a day now means fewer boxes to pack and leave to the movers. But this morning we’re slow. Ed finds some horrifically bad movie on Hulu and I get sucked into it.

A lazy beginning.

But we pick up speed. A stop at Home Depot. (Will I be able to adjust to a life eventually without Home Depot? There is a community of people with projects here. You can see it: people with lists, needing one thing or another to move their goal forward. You buy, you return what you don’t need. A communal place, even as you don’t know the other shoppers.)

At the farmhouse, I quickly start on the doors. Those raised panels are a pain. Drops of stain accumulate in the crevices. So much wiping, correcting! But as we get closer to evening, I see the end: one more door and I'm done...

Ed asks – aren’t you sealing them?

Say what? I conditioned, I stained... frames, now doors – and it’s all taking forever (see previous posts)! I had sealed window frames, but there, I worried about moisture.

I'm told that in fact, many people just seal. That’s most important. It keeps stains and fingerprints off. And it lets you wipe off messes.

Sigh. Okay. Lets get the varnish. I’ll seal.

And here’s a remarkable thing: wipe-on varnish is easy! I sail through this stage! Ah, these small surprises overshadow the grave setbacks. There’s light. Really there is. Today I hear one bird sing on a wintry gray branch set against a brooding sky. Tomorrow – a cacophony of birdsong and brilliant spring weather. One can hope.





It’s very late by the time we stop our work.  We pick up a pizza at the Roman Candle, just before the place closes for the night. Lightening flashes, we rumble back to the condo, where the mess of packing is already in full swing.