The Wonders of Youth and Strength

I have picked up a stomach bug and was down with it yesterday. I got very little done. Thankfully the young men of the family came to the rescue. Though Ian was committed to photographing a wedding in BC this weekend he came over yesterday afternoon and spent a couple of hours working before he had to take off. Between him and Zak they got the mini-blinds hung. Zak assembled and attached the shelves above the couch/bed units in back. These will give us a place for books, CDs, DVDs, small baskets for socks, undies, medication, etc.

This morning Zak (bless him) gave the carpets in the house a good vacuuming, a job that usually puts me down for two days. He washed doors and did some general helpful "getting ready to move" stuff before lunch time.

Shortly after noon Mandy's Mom (Carol) and 22-year-old brother (Dan) arrived. Carol brought a wonderful lunch which everyone enjoyed. I even managed to eat a bit of turkey and some cherries without feeling sick. Once we'd eaten and had a good visit Carol went on her way, leaving the 6' 4" Dan to help Zak. Honestly, one forgets what can be accomplished by young strong men in only a few hours. I was amazed as they scrubbed the trailer down, rinsed it and waxed it in less than two hours. It looks so much better.

Zak sanded the back bumper down to bare metal, so we can repaint it. Had it not been raining they'd have gone on to caulk the seams and prime the stripes, but the weather is cold with intermittent rain, so the caulking and priming must wait for a sunny, warmer day. Inside they hung a heating unit, and insulated some hard-to-reach areas. Dan volunteered to come back next weekend to help Ian, which I know Ian will appreciate. Some jobs just take two sets of strong arms.

I did some painting (shelves) and finished and hung the front curtain panels. They look really nice. I love the colours, the motion of the waves, the koi.... all of it I guess.

In the end we ran out of jobs we could do without shopping, but we made a lot of progress. I can see the thing actually being finished in time now. Still have loads to do in the house, but more progress has been made than is visible. Cupboards and closets are cleaned out, and we've done a lot of purging. I still don't know what I'm going to do with all my research papers. Three books in progress, all with attendant research... But how do I justify three bank boxes of documents when all we have to store our clothes is one drawer each and a 16" wide closet which we have to share?

I have to think quick. It's only two weeks now. But today, even though the Trailer Gremlins took to the field, we came off 10 to 1 in favor of the Home Team.