Cold!!!

I got to bed much too late last night, resulting in a morning that was far too early from my point of view. The monster Boxer makes a nuisance of herself again, and I feel pretty darn wretched as I drag myself out of bed and shiver at the feel of yet another frighteningly chilly day. According to grandpa the temperature almost reached zero in the early morning, which explains why I was cold through the majority of the night. I definitely need to find another blanket tonight.

Though the sun is shining bravely, it really can’t compete with the chilling wind blowing full force down the mountain, and with puffy eyes I stumble down to the house, knowing full well that the day’s going to be a bad one, if all the little aches and strains are an indication. I definitely overdid things yesterday, and it shows with every dragging step I take.

My dogs aren’t any happier than I am when I reach the house, hurrying inside, swearing when I find that I’m the first to arrive, with no gas heaters blasting full force to welcome me. Still, as soon as I put the radio on and snap Trin Trin to the leash that is to keep her from attacking the other dogs in the next few hours, I head for the kitchen.

Considering the fact that today the old stove is going out, I decide to start dinner early. A good Italian stew, with lots of potatoes and seven kinds of veggies should be sturdy enough, and by the time the sibs come down, the stew is bubbling and steaming full force, filling the house with the scent of brewing herbs. When the sibs are done with a quick breakfast the stew is done and can be put aside for dinner.

Now that everyone has done their business at the new counter I apply another generous amount of silicone glue to the sides of the sink, going through lots of wet wipes to remove the excesses until at last I’m pretty sure that it’s going to hold well enough for a while at least and keep the water from getting to the multiplex wood.
Getting to work takes quite a while, and we’re all irritable for some reason as slowly, but steadily we get back into the rhythm, when I put in the last supportive beam underneath the sink, this time without actually having to crawl underneath.

With the sisters painting edges and some more spice drawers, big brother and I saw out the shape of the huge stove/oven. Before we can actually fit it, however, another section of the old counter needs to be demolished which takes us several more hours.
The old oven–that hasn’t worked for over two years–needs to be cut out and carried to the car, as does the old stove that we actually need to saw from it’s place before we can get to the large ventilator that hangs overhead.

This takes even longer, since several screws have gone bad, and we end up just breaking the entire thing off when big brother bumps his head on the corner for the fifth time sine we started the kitchen project. We jump back when the flexible tube comes down in its pursuit, scattering a load of dirt that has somehow gotten stuck in the ceiling.

While the old kitchen appliances are carted out, little brother and I patch the hole in the ceiling, ending up pretty content when see the new board fit perfectly in the cut out section that was a serious eyesore.

Finally the L-shaped section is removed and the floor cleaned, allowing big brother and me to place the new stove/oven into its allotted place in the new counter. It looks beautiful, and for a moment we’re all pretty pleased with the view of the new kitchen, coming even closer to completion.

While the younger sibs and I start cleaning up, big brother cuts four large ventilation holes into the center of the counter where later the raised section will be placed with a grillwork that still needs to be acquired.
The new stove is tested then. All five burners work, and the oven goes on–after we finally figure out how to light it. Hah. Success is a great feeling!

No klutzy stuff from me today, which is a relief since I feel unbalanced enough to start screeching about a hangnail most of the day. Today the particular ailment seems to have jumped over to little brother who at one point starts leaking blood all over the floor, due to a little mishap with the hand saw. Nothing too serious, though.

By eight thirty in the evening, we’ve got everything cleaned, the drawers in place (they look great, even without the decorative cover in front of them) the tools put aside, and we all have dinner–seated this time. Apparently it’s a hit ‘cause I thought I’d made enough for tomorrow. Within less than half an hour the last portion is scraped out and the dogs are having a fest with licking out the dish.

I’m feeling far too edgy to just sit back and watch TV, so with the large suitcases of screws in front of me, I start sorting through the mess this project is creating in our supplies and spent two hours with the mind numbing chore of sorting about a thousand of the darn little things, and putting them back where they belong. Keeping the hands busy while watching TV is always an excellent way to keep from wallowing, I’ve found.

As the evening progresses the temperature drops even more, not allowing the two heaters to do much good. For a change I’m not the only one complaining about the cold, either. Even little sister, who usually enjoys colder temperatures, is claiming to have frozen feet as I finish up with the night’s sorting chore and turn on the computer for some distraction.

There are a few messages, but I go through them half-heartedly when I find myself incapable of focusing. The writing session we’d intended today isn’t going to go through, either what with my mind continuing to feel oddly fuzzy.

At long last the night comes to an end, and I feel pretty darn uncomfortable with the cold while being flushed at the same time. I head up to my room, almost toppling over right outside the courtyard when I step wrong and balance precariously when the heavy on my hip tries to help gravity along on the uneven ground. By stepping forward quickly I manage to use momentum to gain my balance and give a relieved sigh as I continue on up.

Already I suspect that my cabin will have temperatures matching the outside and give an involuntary shiver when I open the front door and let the dogs storm inside, eagerly.
When I get inside I find the thermometer down to 5 degrees, Yikes!

The first thing to do is head for the heater and stand shuffling in front of it while it heats up. With my hand on the CD player I try to get the darn thing started for almost fifteen minutes but I fail once again. In the end I give up on the darn thing and switch on the computer for some background noise before I feed the dogs.

I have prudently taken another quilt up to my cabin today, and am actually looking forward to an early night buried under five layers of blankets and a multitude of dog bodies eager to crowd close.