3.08.2013

#Slice2013 - Day 8 of 31

The bedrooms are clouded with dust, obscuring my view of The Husband. We both wear industrial dust masks, his with a shield that covers his face completely. The lightbulb from an unshaded lamp in the corner of the room casts a dusky orange glow across the walls. This looks more like a scene straight out of post-apocalyptic movie than a simple floor renovation.

We step out, remove earplugs and dust masks. Wipe down our hands and head outside for relief and cool fresh air.

But there is work yet to be done.

The dust settles. After a few minutes with a shop vac, the floor appears.

It's rough and pale, free from the black squiggly snail trails of glue that were there just an hour ago. Faded yellow paint still lines the perimeter of the room, peeking out from beneath the baseboards as if mocking us in a silly game of peek-a-boo. Yes, paint. I still see you. But your days are numbered too.

We worked as a team, him silently braced against the concrete grinder as it whirled back and forth, me sweeping back dust to see where he had been and attacking the heavy spots with the shop vac.

Though the room vibrated with the growl of the grinder, it was a quiet noise. Harmonious, even.

It feels good, having done this work together. Exactly what I wanted from our projects in this house. There is still much to do, even tonight we need to get back in there to wash down the concrete and inspect our work further.

Tomorrow, we build these floors back up. But tonight, I already feel accomplished.

8 comments:

  1. Sounds like you have a huge project going on. It's great that you work well together- think it could get pretty ugly if you didn't! Best of luck this weekend!

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  2. There's such a sense of accomplishment here...great words, great work.

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  3. Sounds like you have a huge project going on. It's great that you work well together- think it could get pretty ugly if you didn't! Best of luck this weekend!

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  4. Sounds like you have a huge project going on. It's great that you work well together- think it could get pretty ugly if you didn't! Best of luck this weekend!

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  5. What a great sense of accomplishment when you finish and can look back on what you have created. Can I just say I'm glad it's you and not me? (Sorry) I know it will be so worth it when you are finished.

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  6. I was wondering how things were going with the floor. It sounds like you are making progress. You so vividly create the "post apocalyptic" scene with the specificity of your words.

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  7. Simple floor renovation! Ha ha - that's a good one! There's a lovely spareness to your writing here, all that is said and unsaid shows how well you are working together and moving forward as a team. Best of luck to you on this renovation.

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  8. Progress is slow and the floors definitely have a mind of their own! But we're getting there. If I wasn't all sinus-stuffy and gross today, I think we'd actually be close to done!

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