Intervening times

Hot Saturday was over and we intended to spend Sunday attacking the downstairs circuits. We got all set up in the basement, stapled two runs' worth of tubing (which takes about 20 minutes), and were just about to follow them into the first crawlspace when we got a phone call from Florida. Some important family things were happening there, and John decided to jump in his car and head down. It would be a week before we'd get into that crawlspace and continue with the stapling.

In the meantime, I got a visit from our friend Tyler, traveling through between Wisconsin and DC. He's done a lot of painting in his day, and I thought that putting a finish coat on the porch ceiling might be a good project for us. Trouble was, I didn't have enough paint. (Go figure!) So it was sort of half-get-something-done, half-learn-about-painting. We moved all the plants and the porch swing onto the lawn. Tyler painted all around the edge of the ceiling where it meets the wall, and we realized that we need to add some quarter-round trim there because it sort of randomly ends in odd places. I thought I'd take roller duty and fill in the field, but there wasn't nearly enough paint and besides, the beadboard ceiling has lots of gaps that should be caulked before painting. I filled the smaller ones with paint, getting some semigloss in my hair as I went, plus some drips on the floor and some streaks on the cat, while Tyler painted all around the edge without getting a drop on him, even his hands. What a pro.

He also showed me how to really clean brushes, which I haven't been doing as well as I should have. Now all I need is a few hours, a fresh can of paint, a tube or two of caulk and that ceiling will be history. A shout-out to Tyler for the tips and the brushwork!

- Erika