Photo of a Photo

I wanted to blip so I looked around the house to find something to photograph. I spotted this photo taken in 1951 of my father and mother with our two cocker spaniels Reggie (in my mother's lap) and his son Freckles. They are sitting in our living room.

I got a good solid night's sleep last night so I felt pretty good all day until around six when I suddenly felt really tired. I was sitting in the local pizza restaurant with Helena. We had just finished dinner together. I decided it would be a good time to head home, especially since I can't find my distance glasses. I suspect I may have left them at the apartment in Paris. I texted the owner to see if she found them.

Today I unpacked. And I went shopping at Costco for food for the bridge group tomorrow. We are meeting at my brother Dave's house but I am still responsible for the food. Next I went to Helen's to drop off a couple of things I'd carried home for her in my big suitcase. And then I went to the lake house to see how things are going there. 

Will completed painting the interior and it looks fantastic. Should have done it years ago... but with all the furniture it would have been a challenge. The carpets look amazing given how grungy they looked before I left. The carpet cleaners who have cleaned them for years outdid themselves. Again not having furniture in place made all the difference.

There are still some things to do to make the house appealing. Jane is doing some of the cleanup herself, going beyond the job description of realtor. Will's daughter is busily cleaning everything in the kitchen and bathrooms so they will sparkle and Jane is working on the cabinetry. When it is clean Will plans to oil it with teak oil. I saw an example and it makes a huge difference. Today Jane and I made decisions about which windows had to be replaced and what window covering to have where. It looks like the house won't be ready to show for a few more weeks. But when it is ready, I think somebody will fall in love with it and enjoy it as much as Arvin and I did the 27 years we lived in it.

Interesting note: when I arrived home yesterday, it felt like "home" not just "new house." And as I drove to my old neighborhood this afternoon I didn't feel the pang of missing the area I had before. Seems Paris cleaned out my yearning and left me in a happy state of loving my new home and not minding selling the old one. Nice.

As I mentioned the day ended with Helena and me having dinner at La Fiama, a wonderful local pizza place. It has been a good day and I'm happy to be home. I am so glad I went on the trip. It was fun, and I even lost weight since we did so much walking and exploring. And that was while I ate all kinds of really yummy French food.