This Past Week In The Life

Hey, Everyone:
This past week has been non-stop action. My Sister Susan, a major 'Force of Nature', on a 'spur of the moment' trip', came to my home and WOW!
Susan Claire lives in Hayesville, NC and she and her husband decided to spend the Labor Day Holiday in Memphis, with their Son. She called me and said that if I would come to Memphis to get her on Monday, she would come over and make my dream of a yellow family room a reality.
She paints at her home all the time and is very talented with a Paint Brush! I knew for a very certain fact that my husband wasn't about to allow me to take on this project, for the simple fact that it would take me years to finish and he wasn't about to do it. Susan, on the other hand, wouldn't even ask, and her projects get finished - "TODAY"!
I went to Memphis on Monday. Susan had come to her Son's home prepared. She brought her own ladder, paint tray, roller and extension pole. I mentioned, she has done this before. Well, I loaded her up and all her equipment, hugged my nephew, his two boys and his wife and we left for North Little Rock. We didn't get here until 4:45 p.m. and since it was a Holiday, thought the paint store would be closed. Instead we literally ran through Sam's, I needed a few things for the meals I knew I would be fixing, and then on to my home.
I fixed supper, fed EC and Susan, made plans for the following day and we went to bed early. That was the last time!
To say that Susan is an early riser, is an under-statement. She and her husband have, for the last 5 years, gotten up at 3 a.m., dressed for the day and driven to Atlanta, Georgia, to work. It is only 100 miles. Susan retired this year so Larry has had to drive in alone. He decided to go in earlier so that he could get home earlier. Well, now he gets up at 1:30 a.m. gets dressed and drives in to be at work at 5 a.m. so that he can leave by 1:30 p.m. and get back home by 4 p.m. to see Susan.
Well, naturally, just because Susan was here, her habits did not change. She was up at 3 a.m., waiting on us to get up. I don't have the same sleep habits.
Around 6 a.m., I woke up and discovered Susan, showered, with make-up on, tapping her foot, waiting on me, and wanting to go to the paint store. I fixed breakfast, and we left to buy paint.
The rest of the week is a paint splattered blur. My entry hall had really ugly wall paper on it, the front door was ugly faux wood grain, and the 45 foot front hall and my living room was painted off-white. Yuk! My task was to get the wall paper down. Whoever put the wall paper up was, at the very least, lazy. Although the job was well done, they had put it up on un-prepared sheet rock. That made my job very difficult. The paper came down in little jibbles.
A tip to all wallpaper removers - use vinegar and water. The stuff you buy at the paint store is a waste of money and didn't work at all. The vinegar/water solution works great.
In all, we used five gallons (the wall paint was not actually gallons-three quarters of a gallon is actually the truth) on the wall, one quart in the entry hall for and accent under a chair rail, and one of those three quarter gallons on the soffet in the living room.
WOW! you should see the results! It's like having a new home. The whole place takes on a glow that is wonderful.
Susan worked, non-stop every day. Her ladder was too short, so we sent EC off to get an eight foot one. She painted, spackled, caulked, and painted and painted. She changed brushes, changed paint, wiped, climbed the ladder, moved the ladder. Mercy! and the whole time EC and I did what she told us. EC ran errands, we changed out all the plastic switch plates and electrical outlet covers, to brass, so we sent EC to buy out all the Lowe's stores. (there are only two in this area) EC was sent out to buy more caulk and some ceiling paint.
I was determined to rid my entry hall of all that paper and I stayed up Tuesday until the last jibble was removed from the wall. Then, I had to paint, with oil-based paint, the front door and the two side panels and all the trim. It took two coats, but you should see it now. It is beautiful!
It took me two days, but I got it done.
On Thursday, Susan said she would probably be through by noon, then she changed her prediction to three o'clock. Well, at three the next morning, we were still at it. Then she said, "Well, I didn't say what three!" Friday morning came, EC had set the clock for 6 a.m. to race to Lowe's for a quart of ceiling paint. We had only slept for two and a half hours. I told them they were killing me. Susan was up, she had a lot of touching up to do. We thought we would leave for Memphis by 11 a.m. You guessed it, it was much later.
We did not get finished until 5 p.m. on Friday. I had to get Susan back to Memphis. Her Son was taking her to Alabama to meet her Husband at 6 a.m. on Saturday morning. Also, we wanted to go to the two Lowe's near her Son's home to get the rest of the outlet covers. We got to Memphis by 7:30 p.m. and hit both stores, and got Susan to her Son's by 8:30 p.m. I was back on the road by 8:54 headed for Little Rock.
I got here a little after 11 p.m. I needed sleep. I was teaching a class at 9 a.m. in Bryant, AR., the next morning and my Sunday School Class was having lunch here on Sunday after Church. At some point I would have to put my house back in order, bake a chocolate cake and make banana pudding, as I had promised some members of my Class.
That all done, I figure if I make it through today, I deserve a rest. We'll see.
We'll talk again soon,
Carol Ann,Quilter