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I don't know if it's just that
there were a couple less days in February or what, but last month
just seemed to disappear on me. Of course, I suppose it might have
had something to do with Mardi Gras sneaking up on the heels of the
Saints' Super Bowl win but either way, here comes Spring. Not a
moment too soon, if you ask me. Now if we can just hang onto it long
enough this year to make it a more memorable season than it was last
time around it'll make all that snow and ice cold temperatures worth
losing all of my plants over. I'll admit that I have wanted to clean
up and re-landscape my yard; I was just hoping to decide on how and
when I was going to do it instead of letting Mother Nature take the
reins and decide for me.
While winter was still maintaining its hoar frost hold on my
windshield, hibernating grass and barely existing plants, activity
within my home kept me captivated. Having been in my house for five
years, I was finally able to begin the first of the major
renovations that I had been planning. I'd already managed to
complete some minor changes over the years but this was the biggest.
And from my previous experiences, I knew that this was not going to
be something to undertake without professional help.
Thankfully, in the course of my days at work I run into any number
of people who specialize in varying types of home construction
and/or reconstruction. One day a customer mentioned how his tiling
business had been slow of late. I mentioned how my kitchen looked
like something that the '70s had thrown up with its pink ceramic
tile floor, small white counter tiles that spread all the way up the
backsplash and an island so intrusive that you couldn't open an
appliance without bumping into it. One thing led to another and
before I knew what I had signed on for, I was packing my kitchen
into boxes and piling the appliances and contents of my counters
into other rooms and covering the rest of my home with plastic
sheeting. Except for the lack of any murderous predilections, my
house suddenly had the appearance of a scene out of Dexter or
American Psycho.
Before too long the few dishes, cups and glasses I had used in the
first couple of days were piling up and so I converted my guest
bathroom sink into a dishwasher. And while one bedroom housed my
appliances, the other became a temporary pantry. Once I had
exhausted my leftovers and whatever could be micro-waved out of the
freezer, though, there was not much left but to eat out or order in.
Were I still twenty-something this life wouldn't have been an
issue-in fact; it might have even felt like I was living the good
life. Having settled into a life when take-out was the exception
instead of the rule and making dinner at home wasn't considered a
chore, this kitchen renovation quickly became a burden rather than a
boon. Were it not for the pace of the change I might have gotten
more sullen, especially when the first attempt at installing my
countertop resulted in it cracking in half before my eyes.
My life now was confined to my living room and bedroom. And while
the renovations were moving along at a good clip, I was surprised to
see how quickly life can be crippled by even the smallest change in
what has become routine. I never realized how much time I spent in
my kitchen. Add onto that the fact that my laundry room was part of
the construction along with desk where I do some of my work and pay
my bills, and suddenly I had a whole lot of time where I couldn't
get done a lot of my daily tasks.
Some of the extra time I suddenly found myself with ended up being
spent watching much more television than I would care to admit to.
And a few of these newfound hours even found me watching a couple
evening repeats of the big O's talk show. While I am not one who
you'll usually find jumping on the latest bandwagons, one of her
newest high speed trains surprised me and made me jump aboard. If
you haven't heard, the Queen of Talk has made it her mission to
encourage people to commit to not using telephones while they are
behind the wheel of a car. If you haven't heard about it, I suggest
you check out her website and take the challenge to not text and/or
drive while driving your car. And if you are reading this anywhere
in East Baton Rouge Parish or any of its neighboring parishes (or
just about anywhere, I would guess), then I know you'd agree that
it's time we all hopped on board this wagon!
While I know it might be hard for some people to believe, there was
a time not all that long ago that talking and driving wasn't even an
option. And as best as I remember, we lived okay without this
ability. People would just leave us a message at our work or home
and we'd call them back whenever we got around to checking them.
When we were in the car we talked to the people who sat beside us.
Or we just listened to the radio. Or we took some time to just be
quiet and think. Either way, you and I both know that the practice
of texting and/or talking while driving isn't safe. If you don't
believe me, then take a look at some of those crash test videos and
see for yourself what a multi-ton vehicle like yours can do to you
and those you share your car with-not to mention what it can do to
an innocent person that you might not see while that phone distracts
your attention.
So I challenge you to at least try to cut back on texting and/or
talking while you drive too. And while you go and sign up to accept
that challenge, I'm going to go and start putting my kitchen back
together. See you on the road! |
