in an otherwise gloomy June. I found this baby blue jay sitting on the side porch this morning. He's a smart little thing, finding a place out of the rain. Cairo wanted to eat him, of course, so I moved him to the wisteria after taking these photos. Although he showed no fear when I got close, he was not happy when I picked him up. His adult feathers are not all grown in, but his voice is fully mature. He is able to fly several feet at a time, so I am hoping he gets better at it quickly. Our next door neighbor has a houseful of cats, and I'm sure they would love to have him for dinner.
This is the wettest June I can remember. I am not a rain person, particularly right now. Our wood floors are being redone and they just won't dry. I had hoped to move back into the house tomorrow, Clara's 21st birthday, but we're not even close. Maybe Friday, the floor guy said. That's the day the appliances were supposed to be delivered. So now we're putting that off until the following week. I am sleeping in the new basement (which is almost finished, but not quite). Even though it will someday be a nice room, right now it's not. The foundation is not completely dry, and all our belongings are piled everywhere you look. We are lucky to have the old fridge and a sink in the basement, as well as access to the mud room and new bathroom. Thank goodness we had that floor tiled.
Pete is commuting to his office on the second floor via ladder. I feel like we're living in a reversed version of Rapunzel. I call to him from outside when I need something and he throws it down to me . . . His office is connected to our spare bedroom, so he has been able to sleep there. I, of course, don't do ladders that high since my knee surgery last year, so I am in the basement with the cat and dog. Clara is sleeping on the couch in my studio, which gives her (but not me when I need to work) a bit of privacy. The studio is a mess right now, too, because I'm getting ready for a show on Saturday). We've had offers to stay from several friends and neighbors, but with a cat and dog, we don't feel we can impose.
I know we are near the end. I know I am incredibly lucky to have been able to do this renovation, but I am at the end of my tether. Tuesday was particularly bad. Pete left at 5 am for an appointment in Binghamton, NY (a 6 hour drive). I had to finish moving the last of the furniture to the front porch so the floor guys could start. The electricians were here, as were the painters. It was mayhem, and I was very close to tears. But I was saved from disintegration by Brian, one of our electrician's, who talked me back from the edge.
I am eternally grateful to all the guys who have been building our addition. They have been wonderful -- friendly, respectful, thoughtful, supportive. They find solutions to every problem (and there have been a lot of problems, thanks to an architectural firm who is not friendly, respectful, thoughtful or supportive). Although I am looking forward to the day when I no longer have to listen to the air compressor, table saw, and nail gun, I will miss all of them when they move on to their next job.
In the mean time, if the sun would shine, I could handle all of this so much better.
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