I suppose it’s just too much to ask to have two calm days in a row? It was by no means an awful day, as some have been, but I wouldn't categorize it as particularly pleasant either.
It probably didn't help that is was Saturday, which is Part II of my two days of cleaning every week. Try as I might to get much of it done on Fridays, it never fails that I still have at least six hours of cleaning on Saturdays. Perplexing. I am convinced that it is some sort of cleaning conspiracy against me.
It's no secret that I hate cleaning. I am aware that I am not an anomaly when it comes to my strong dislike of cleaning. However, I find it curious that I am so enamored with cleanliness (more than the average person I am convinced), yet so disdainful of cleaning itself when the two go hand-in-hand. For example, I love to eat, but I also love to cook, so that is logical. The other is not. I think it is the monotony of cleaning, not to mention the fleeting sense of accomplishment, most frustrates me.
Catherine was particularly helpful to me today, which I was so appreciative for. She kept offering to take on tasks and once done, asking what she could do next. Honestly, just her company was calming to me.
We finally all got outside to the pool 3 this afternoon. Although tired by that point, I was relieved that the cleaning was behind me so my mood picked up a bit. No sooner than I had put my feet up and opened my New York Times did I hear the commotion. It wasn't a snake and no one was drowning (thank God), but it was still not what I needed at that moment. Catherine was diving into the pool and took one of the big clay and metal pots in with her. by mistake. This was one of a set of three matching pots that sit above three water features for the pool. The pots were there when I moved in and for quite sometime before that, I surmise, which means I will need to replace all three, not just one.
The (big) kids tried for at least 45 minutes to salvage the pot from the bottom of the pool. They kept diving down, surveying the situation, and coming back up to discuss various recovery strategies. It was as if they were attempting to bring up a precious artifact from the sunken Titanic. Their goal was to get the pot out of the pool, ideally in one piece. I watched (diligently) from the sidelines but didn’t get involved directly because I just thought it better that I not. At one point, Catherine tried to pull the pot up from the bottom and dropped it halfway during her ascent. The pot proceeded to sink to the bottom and broke. Garin, the main strategist, became quite upset because apparently, he had been working on a different plant that he thought would have a better outcome. So much for the pot.
A short time later I went in to start dinner. The pool was locked up and the kids had moved on to other backyard activities. I wasn’t sure exactly what they were doing but I heard a lot of playing and happy noises. A short time later Catherine appeared at the kitchen window with a beautiful stone she had painted. She had painted purple hearts of various sizes and shades on the stone. She said it was a token of her apology for breaking the pot earlier. I was so touched by her thoughtfulness. However, what I was not touched by was when I went out a little later and found that they had all been painting on the hardscape rather than putting down the tarp that I had for them in their art bin There was paint everywhere and from previous experiences with their clothes, I knew that it was not washable paint. Garin once again took control of the remediation committee. His solution was to create buckets of soapy water and use scrub brushes to try to get the paint off the stone. Last I looked, it sort of worked, but it looks like they might have to continue with their remediation efforts tomorrow. So much for the hardscape.
I took a deep breath and chalked it up to being one of those days. I served a nice dinner on the patio and tried to forget about it all. At least the house was clean....for a few hours.
I found this creepy eye picture on my phone tonight when I went to upload today's photos onto my computer. Taken this morning by Catherine, I confirmed, and perhaps a foreboding of how the day was to go.
The broken pot from the sunken Titanic. It does have that eerie shipwreck look to it doesn't it?
Where once stood three, now stand only two - pots that is.
The remediation crew attempting to extract the non-washable paint from the patio.
Dinner at last. A fresh garden salad with three-colored cherry tomatoes and feta cheese.
Vegetarian Chili with Summer Vegetables (recipe courtesy of Food Network Magazine). Delicious!