Getting Close to Done

There are only a few items left on Bob’s to-do list. The biggest item is to put vinyl siding back on the house. He thinks that’s the last thing he has to do but I have a short list of action items for him.

He said to me yesterday as he was clearing out the majority of his tools from my house to his truck, “so this took about what I said it would take, right? Two to three weeks.” I turned to look at him to see when we were going to laugh. He just stared back.

I asked, “What?”

He said, “The whole construction took about two to three weeks.”

“Bob, we’ve been living like this since September.”

“Well, yeah, that... but, that was the town. It had nothing to do with me.”

In all fairness he’s half-right. The town slowed us up but if you’ll read my earlier rant called, “Permits” you’ll see that the town is not completely to blame on this issue.

So I’ve been doing a lot of painting. I wanted to hire it out because I wanted to:

1. get this all done as soon as possible
2. because it’s back breaking work.

It’s not just painting that needs to be done. This is bare sheetrock with spackle. That means the spackle all needs to be as smooth as silk. Some people use fine sandpaper but it’s not a good idea. If you read the small print on joint compound tub, it tells you that it’s a carcinogen if it flows through the air. So, don’t use sand paper.

I use warm water and a sponge. I’m not a big gadget person but I did find a nice sanding sponge at the hardware store that is worthwhile. Just take the sponge and act like you’re washing a chalkboard. In fact, I even got my 4-year-old son Max in on the work today. He thought it looked like fun and I had him go around and wipe down all the walls. He did a pretty good job and it kept him busy and stopped the incessant, “Can I help? What can I do? Can I use this hammer? I’m a real good hammerer.”

If some of the spackle has rough edges you need to rub a little harder. Joint compound will soften with warm water. Swirl the sponge in circles. Trust me—do this part right because once you paint it you will see every flaw magnified!

I did consult a painter and got an estimate. After I got up off the floor, I decided I’d better just do it myself. I just couldn’t justify spending that kind of money (three THOUSAND dollahs) to paint the walls. It’s like going to a restaurant and paying $20 bucks for macaroni and cheese. I’m sorry.. this just isn’t that hard. If I’m desperate, I’ll go get my own illegals off the street and tell them to paint. If I don’t say what race the illegals are—is it ok?

So while paint isn’t critical to live in a room, it’s not really all that inviting to put your bedroom in a room that has bare sheet rock and plywood floors. (oh yeah, that renovation price didn’t include any paint or floor coverings).

Before you say, “Claudine, why are you painting so much? Take a break.. it can wait. Relax a bit first.” (MOM) I’m borrowing Bob’s ladder, which is taller than our ladder. Bob doesn’t know I’m using his ladder and he kind of has tool issues. But, if he can smoke in my house repeatedly (after I told him not to) I’m going use his ladder (and I’m not even wiping the purple paint drips that fell on it either).