Family style, work.
My mom had been telling me that my uncle wanted to teach my boys how to paint, for a couple of months if not since the last time I saw him, pre-covid. This is my dad’s brother, the skinniest man alive.
So, I knew, when he came to visit my mom, that he would probably spend a morning here. He is 78 years old and a powerhouse of work ethic. He lives in Florida now so mostly its a twice a year proposition.
He called me last weekend to make sure I knew what supplies to get, which made me realize the error of my ways.
My kid owed me money for utlizing paypal without asking (big fucking no on that.) So my uncle had a chance to teach him how to scrape down stair risers, let them dry and then prep them for painting, and then paint them.
Which he did.
Oh, and then they hauled. And they powerwashed.
My uncle also uncovered the patio pavers, which were covered almost entirely by grass and the dirt and friends that grass brings.
He and my mom restored part of my garden to beauty, pruning a rose bush back into a non-dangerous specimen and giving me a chance to see my daylilies again. By doing so, they uncovered the peeling of the paint on the breakfast nook that my uncle had seen at his last visit. it had bothered him. this would be at Thanksgiving, of pre-covid, so… November 2019. I’m going to type it out, yes, the peeling paint on my window sills bothered my uncle twenty one months ago.
So, the whole point of this post is here. Make a list. Cross things off. Its the best thing in the whole world. (for your nieces.) A long list, a 21 month list.
Honestly, my mom and uncle kicked my ass. They worked like beasts and my kids and I ran around following orders and pulling away tarps full of yard debris. A deck was powerwashed by me, in the fervor of ‘oh my god, work!’ … I made lunch once, drove to pick up lunch once, went to work once… It was two long half days and I’m really truly giddy with some of the things they did.
Its kind of amazing to realize how much things weigh on you, that aren’t even making your lists. It can feel pretty insurmountable here, this house, this yard. It really can.
That said, I’m going to go paint another stair riser, because I wrote a bunch this morning, and I really want to paint more.
A list!
but first, some more painting.
Yeah for you and your house! I’ve been struggling here to get the chaos under control with the vegetation because we’re heading toward Sleeping Beauty’ s impenetrable castle hedge. Finally finished cutting back, pulling, up cleaning out the rock wall at the bottom of the driveway. I was even able to get some of the rocks that had fallen out back in place. It took me two weeks because I’m working slow these days, but it felt so good to see it in good shape again. For me it’s also one of my best stress reliefs. Let’s hear it for repairing and restoring. 😊 Big “Hi” to your Mom.
Well done! Joel loves projects. He won’t even visit me because I don’t have enough projects for him to do. Doesn’t want to just sit around and talk. So lucky you. Sounds like a very productive time. Good for the kids to see the old man in action and learn something of the Bowie work ethic we grew up on. Lists – maybe you can check in with Joel later to see what else he noticed that you hadn’t even thought to put on your list. He was a house painter in high school and college to earn needed $ so has a professional eye and standard. Good guy.