no rest for the wicked

This was not a restful weekend, but we did TONS of things! The master bath is now repainted. A new valance has been hung. New towels were purchased. It looks pretty spiffy! That room is a pain in the butt to paint with five doorways and enough trim work to drive anyone insane.

But, it is complete now except for touching up some of the trim pieces that need a fresh coat of Swiss White.

Hubby fixed all three toilets, they were making weird noises. He replaced our mailbox. He fixed the front door and garage door deadbolts. And he smoked a Boston butt roast! Looks like we will have pulled pork for dinner tonight!

I did laundry, did a bit of grocery shopping, and even found a few minutes to read a book.

Last night we had a nice cookout/visit with the neighbors and some friends of theirs from church.

So, it is back to work for us today, but it is a short week. Not too bad.

the lace reader

If I'm not mistaken, our Friends book club read this novel a while back. I found a copy in the bookstore inventory closet and borrowed it for my vacation.  It was neat to read this story down on the beach as the author, Brunonia Barry, uses setting or sense of place in such an important way.

The novel takes place in Salem, Massachusetts, well known historically for the whole American witch hunt phenomena.  But the story also has key locations in an old house, several islands and other locales.  The overall sense of place becomes as important as the characters. The Lace Reader was a very good read and I enjoyed the settings and the characters. 

I did paint my pantry yesterday and can't stop myself from admiring the fresh walls, the organized shelves and the overall sense of neatness when I'm in the kitchen.  Now I just need to replace the ceiling fixture and it will be complete.  I think I'm going to have Painting Mondays for a while.  It has always bothered me that the backsides of many of the closet doors, and the closets themselves, were never repainted beyond the original dingy cream color the previous owners used. We had to move in and get settled in such a hurry that it wasn't even on the 'to do' list.  Now, however, it is and I will slowly make my way through the house taking care of that matter.

Up next on the reading list is a book from Dave Duncan. I started it last night, but it needs to be returned to the library as it is due today. I will have to check it back out on Thursday I guess.