Oh yeah, that real life stuff before a trip...

Dear Reader,

In addition to the joyful, tearful, thrilling, soul-searching work of an artist I've done over the last three weeks preparing both TEMPEST and RAGTIME, We've also had to prepare our home for our absence and a house-sitter's presence for six weeks.

The short list of jobs that mostly fall under my purvey:

Clean out all gutters

Clean out all cat areas (we have a great 14 year old cat named Cole)

Clean the turtle tank (we've recently adopted a cool ten year old Red Eared Slider named Constantine)

Weed the patio area

Cut down/root out all unwanted plants, small saplings and beginnings of saplings from nearby maples and rose of sharon

(I get all the crap jobs)

(But I secretly love being able to do them and make my wife happy)

(Don't tell her that)

(Shoot, she's a follower on this blog)

Snake out a recalcitrant clog in the basement plumbing that caused a washing machine overflow

(THAT was a crap job)

Install new elbow to accommodate washing machine drain hose

Scrape down 5' X 8' and 5' X 5' sections of foundation in the southeast corner and northeast side of the basement where a few pinhole leaks had sprung, caulk with appropriate gear, and cover with two coats of powerful white basement paint.

(Crap job, but I still feel enormous pride from that one)

Completely swap the contents of our room and the boys' room so they can have more room to play and their toys will not make a daily pilgrimage down to the living room! It worked! We have a living room!

Finally, and this was our family's special time together last night...move a mountain of mulch the size of the body of a minivan (I'm not kidding) to various locations about the yard. Libby took advantage of the city's free mulch system when trees are being trimmed in one's neighborhood. The dude said the load would be the size of a small pickup truck. Yeah, we thought he meant the size of load a small pickup truck could carry. Nope. He meant the truck...oh, and the giant tree trimming truck couldn't really turn in our driveway. That meant the giant load was dumped right in the middle of our driveway. Our SHARED driveway with our elderly neighbors who go out for EARLY breakfast each day. We had to clear it last night. And we did it!

CRAP JOB!

BUT! All five of us worked like dogs with shovels, garden rakes, and brooms and bested that beast in four hours! Libby was a champ. All the kids worked hard, but my oldest son, who happens to be all of six years old, worked his shovel like a man for three of those four hours. I told him so. He continues to beam.

Now it's time to pack!

C _ _ P J _ B!

Next up: a report on preparation (which has been rich) when we get to Spring Green!