Obla Dee, Obla Da, Life Goes On (Maggie)

Hi, all! This week's post from me will be an update and progress report on my house, my life, my overall condition and stuff like that. I'll leave it to others to discuss the state of the world in general. My focus has drawn in tight, and it's all on the above. That will probably continue to be the case for the next few posts as well, so if it gets boring, please email and tell me so, and I'll make an effort to poke my head out of my shell and look around for other topics of interest.

I'm still at the Bed & Breakfast and quite comfortable here. I get up every morning, early enough to take care of my email and any blogs or columns or website updates that are due. Then I put on grungy clothes and head up to Serenity. I arrive at the same time as the demolition crew, and we work all day, ripping down sheetrock, pulling nails, unscrewing screws, tearing up floors, pulling down ceilings, removing insulation, uninstalling the baseboard heating thingies. We tore down cupboards and counter tops and took off casing and molding and doors. And we hauled tons of debris out of the house and into the dumpster, which we've filled more times than I can still count.

But I think this Dumpster in the driveway now is the last one we'll need. The house is nearly gutted. Her two by fours are like bones without any flesh on them. We still have part of the kitchen floor left to go, and that's about it.

The electric company finally came and turned on the power Tuesday afternoon, after making me wait ten days for them. Then my electricians arrived Wednesday morning, Very Early. By the time the demo crew and I got there, the electricians had already been working for a couple of hours, and had my office all wired, and also the entry hall and outdoor lights and furnace and pump. The furnace and pump however, can't be turned on until the heating/cooling/plumber team get there to examine everything and pressure test all the pipes, repair any leaks and refill the furnace with water. That is due to take place today.

My office, which will soon become my apartment, needs a day of cleaning, which will also be today if that water gets turned on early enough. Then I'll just need to make a supply run and I'll be able to move in on Friday, right on schedule.

Next week a new crew will take over, and begin sandblasting the charred beams and things in the house. And once that's done, and the mess it makes cleaned up, the reconstruction can begin.

All of that, of course, is secondary to this. I can't find my cat. Glory usually hides very well when the crew is there. She hates all the people and all the noise, and usually finds a haven in the basement and won't come out until they all leave. But for the last two days, I haven't been able to coax her out at all. I have no idea where she's hiding, and I'm worried she might not even be there. Maybe she got outside and ran away, sick and tired of all the inconvenience. I'm pretty concerned. I'm sure she's all right, wherever she is. She's a very tough and self-sufficient cat, and has in the past run off for a few days at a time before showing up at the door as if nothing happened. I'll just feel better once I see her.

As for me personally, I'm still doing well. I'm eager to get back into the house, even my one little piece of it, for now. Everyone I know thinks I'll regret that, and that I'll wish to be anywhere else in short order, but I don't think so. It's my place. I miss it. I can't work here, can't work-out here, can't walk around in my underwear here, can't blast my music and dance around the place here, or sing into a wooden spoon here. (Note to self--buy a wooden spoon.)

I need my place back. I'll get in and I hope, get the internet connection working right away. I'll get the Dish Network people to come out and run me one single line for now. I'll hook up my DVD player and dust off my Bowflex, and the very first night I'll soak in my Jacuzzi to celebrate being back home. I can hardly wait. And I'll get up early every morning so that I can do my writing before the work crews arrive for the day. I'll save my workouts for after they leave, unless it gets to the point where there's nothing I can do to help, in which case, I'll go jogging while they work to give them some space. A wise man just told me that contractors just LOVE having the homeowner standing over their shoulder. So I'll have to keep that in mind and not be that kind of homeowner. I don't want to make the guys miserable, I just want to be involved. So I'll be nice and all will be well. I don't imagine demo crew usually like the homeowner standing over their shoulder, but my demo crew love me working with them. We've actually been having a great time.

I guess being there with my hands in the thick of it, makes me feel less powerless. I'm doing something. I'm physically reclaiming my home. I'm healing her by removing the damage and cleaning the wounds. It's so much better than sitting at the B&B waiting for others to do it all for me. It's empowering and extremely therapeutic for me to be involved in the work. And healthy too--it helps offset all the calories from the great food at the B&B.

So that's the update for now. The demolition is nearly done, then there is a week of sandblasting & cleaning, and then the rebuilding can begin. And I should be spending this coming weekend at home. I sure hope so!

Again, apologies for no pictures. There are a bunch of shots of the damage at my website, but I really do intend to get others up showing the progress, both there and here, as soon as possible. So check back.

Right now, though, I need to don my hardhat and safety glasses. I'm nearly late for work.

Maggie