Tuesday’s Tale

It was a picture perfect Michigan summer day on Tuesday.

Victoria finally returned to work after burying her best friend’s Mother on Friday and her own aunt on Monday. She seemed a bit stressed, so I took her to lunch at Max and Erma’s (somewhere different for her). I listened to her stories of her large (and somewhat crazy) family. Nobody could come up from Puerto Rico, but the rest of them came in from all over the States.

Her two uncles volunteered to fix the brakes on her car (since they came from out of town they were without tools) and that story alone would make a great Blog entry, LOL!

Sidebar: You gotta love large families!  I know I love mine. Thankfully, we haven’t had to do a funeral in a while, but when we get together for graduation parties or Mom’s birthday party, it’s always fun (but exhausting).

The wind had picked up in the afternoon and there were rumors of scattered showers elsewhere. But no rain here.

When I got home, I left the truck outside and resisted the urge to go into the garage until I changed clothes. It was a good thing, since Caley barfed on the bed sheet. I cleaned that up and threw the sheet and all the clothes I could find (I just did the weekend wash) into the washing machine.

Sidebar: That sounds old-school. I should have said washer. But we used to call them washing machines.

I couldn't get to my mail box (again) because of a parked car. Dammit. But the car was gone by then and I realized the paint was now worn. So, I got the marking paint out and repainted it. This time I added the word, "Please!" 

Finally I went out in the garage. Rick had done it! The old garage door was down, and the new wall and window in. It looked great!

Sidebar: I would have preferred the window centered (for looks) but then I realized I could put those metal shelves back up. I almost put them out to the road Monday night, thinking they would be too large.

I went to open the window and found my garage door opener hanging on the handle. Looks like he’s done inside, LOL!

I opened the window and, for the first time since I moved here, I had a nice breeze in the garage! Perfect!!!

I went out back and found the piles of leftover crap (he’s got a guy who’s going to take it to the dump for me). The siding wasn’t up, but I figured that. How he ever thought he could do this all in one day still amazes me. Contractor talk, I guess.

I saved the 2x4 cut offs for my brother Carl’s winter fireplace heat and then went back to the garage.

I started moving things back. Yes, I know, I still need to insulate and drywall this but, without the fake wall, I have plenty of space and no real urgency.

Rick came over and I thanked him for a great job. He took me out back and explained that the siding would be close, but not perfect. Apparently, nobody does aluminum siding these days. It’s all vinyl.

LMAO! He pointed out the spot in front that Jake hit with his Buick and said, “See, you just can’t fix that!”

I told him I didn’t give a shit. I’ll probably be here until I die and then it’s not my problem. I offered to pay him, but he refused.

We talked about the light and the outdoor plug placement and he got what I wanted.

After he left, I moved everything back (sorta) where it was. The main workbench killed me and the little bench (with the band saw on it) put the last nail in the coffin.

But, by 8:30 p.m., I had the truck in the garage again!

I hit up the freezer and made a pizza for dinner. I added some mild yellow pepper rings and black olives to it, along with some more mozzarella cheese.

I ate that watching some apparently forgettable TV (at least I can’t remember it) and then went to bed.

Sidebar: I really, REALLY need a massage! My back is killing me.