I thought I'd celebrate by, even before breakfast, washing 12 windows. Amazing Ken was outside on the big ladder, see, which I found scary, but he was coping admirably with these fucking awful sash windows they have here with screens and 2 sets of storm windows (double glazing) that slide up and down, but only of course if you can find the little cathches to release the sliders, most of which don't work anymore after 40 years. The long and short of this is that the windows at the front of the house, upstairs, are GLEAMING.
I then moved on to Old Nasty Yellowed Brocade Drape Removal. Actually, to be absolutely technically correct, I removed the drapes in the upstairs sitting room BEFORE I washed windows, and in fact while still in my night attire. I then removed the curtain rod and hardware and spackled the nail and screw holes. Then decided maybe I should get dressed before Ken moved the ladder and popped his head over the sill for an eyeful and fell off onto the flagstones and I'd have yet more ashes to cope with.
Showered, shivered, dressed, had a quick Lavazza latte, which which I toasted my husband, then moved pronto into photograph album photographing (3) and Photo Sorting (27 million). Followed by scanning a 90 page film script, which I was sorry I started and didn't leave for Bonnie but once you start you can't stop a scan. The Hillbillies then arrived and tackled the dead/wet/rubbish firewood in the basement and the mega-pile of rusted crap and piles of roof shingles surrounding the garage (didn't mention the 4 dead collies buried there). I finally headed up for a look about 5pm: terrific job. I meandered on about 12 miles further to the end of the drive to get the mail, but got distracted removing rogue ferns from neat & tidy pachysandra beds at the entrance and was there an hour or more getting mosquito bites but it looks nice now. Maybe next time would not have chosen a cashmere sweater to weed in but, we do what we have to do. Here in Becket.
Hillbillies also bought the second drinks-size fridge Peg bought for Alex, because she couldn't stand people keeping "their" soda or beer or wine or juice in "her" fridge. (Nice). $15 bucks. Then someone bought all of Peg's old sheet music and a few books for $100. And another someone bought $300 worth of Peg's glassware, dessert wine glasses and akvavit glasses. All going towards Alex's music school fees. As opposed to a week at Canyon Ranch for myself.
Made dinner for Ken....pasta in red pesto sauce. I could have made do with popcorn or toast but feel guilty not feeding him when he's up on ladders and second-coating the solarium. I then went back to scanning. He tried to tell me some story about when he worked as a bagger at some supermarket in South Carolina, right after his wife died, which involved muffins, and I think was funny (he laughed), so I did too, but couldn;t begging to tell you what it was about since I was in FULL SCANNING MODE and counting pages.
The back room giant freezer is now empty and off. I threw out a frozen duck I found in there.
I am so totally unbelievably exhausted I can't think.
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