Floored Off

Artist in Front of Her Pallet

Here’s a handy hint for anybody who goes about the same project I attempted yesterday – washing and waxing an entire floor. Do not, under any circumstances, seal yourself off from access to the bathroom if you neglected to utilize said bathroom before the sealing. I found myself fretting in the Man Cave yesterday afternoon waiting for the damned floor to dry so I could utilize the facilities on nearly an emergency basis (note - middle age can suck). Buddy was down in the Cave with me and I could almost ready his mind saying that now I know how he feels when he’s left home alone for long hours.

Kitchen Floor Before

The project took longer than expected because it was a lot more work than expected. I thanked the world for my wife’s conspicuous consumption when it comes to cleaning products because her Shark floor cleaner/buffer was key. I moved the furniture to one side of the house, vacuumed, cleaned, laid down the wax, waited for it dry, and then moved all the furniture back. You’ll note that I waited until my wife’s imminent arrival before I did this instead of right after the floor was installed. I figured – why do it twice.

And After

I do find myself strangely in her camp now when it comes to wearing of shoes inside. Having done all the work at creating the shiny floors I’m loath to let them get smudged. My wife nodded sagely when I reported this and carped about my failure to support in earlier efforts in this area – when she had waxed the floors (probably something I’ll be paying for for a while). We had to do this while living in Hawaii (local – strangely Japanese custom) and I always thought it was a pain in the ass. I guess the critical missing element was my involvement in waxing the floor.

It's All in the Wrist Grampa

The First Blog Reader was flexing her creative chops down in New Jersey over the weekend. She’s acquired a drawing tablet and quickly taken to scribbling almost endlessly there. I first noted this when I was taking care of her in February. Her preferred technique is to draw a line and then hand the marker off to whatever adult is closest so she can try another color. She learned how to say “purple” so now all colors are called purple despite my daughter’s best efforts to add to her tinted vocabulary.

Kissing the Elmo Wingman Drew for Her

Whenever Dad Eats - It is Time to Hover

She Does Share Her Bear With Him