Thursday 23 November 2006

Painting bedrooms and towns.

Ro has taken this week off and decided it would be a good opportunity to paint his bedroom. So yesterday I popped into the local very splendid hardware store for colour charts and then we had to discuss how much paint to buy. I decided, briskly, that a litre of paint would do one wall, by the time you'd allowed for built-in cupboards, windows and door you could subtract a wall. The ceiling would add as much again, two coats, allow a bit, call it ten litres. He spent more time working it out properly, then agreed.

Today we have been painting. He did the bulk of it with the roller and I did the corners and fiddly bits. Until we received an invitation to go and play with the babies. Things slackened off abruptly, especially when it was discovered that it was time to get ready to go to Bungay's special late night opening evening. There were all sorts of things planned, including flamenco dancing and 'ice' skating in the hardware store's car park.

It was, indeed, splendid, and Dilly and I spent a couple of hours toddling around the shops with the babies. Squiffany was suitably impressed - when Dilly asked her to fetch her coat, she had been very surprised. She is not unaccustomed to her parents going out in the evening and taking Pugsley, whose food supply is provided as nature intends. "Me? Coat? Dark, my coat?" - but she was happy to comply. She "wowed" and "oohed" cheerfully at all the entertainment provided, especially the fire-dancer, who twirled her fiery sticks with skilful abandon (don't try this at home).

A bit of a problem when the sound system for the flamenco dancers didn't turn up; arrangements were made but they took some time and, sad to say, we couldn't wait ... well, we waited for an extra half hour, but it was already way past Squiffany's bedtime and soon the baby, who had slept peacefully throughout, would want a feed.

Al, at nine-thirty, is not yet home. Bless him, he was not expecting to do much business - although it's useful publicity and people did buy nuts - but being right in the centre of town, he could not pack up early. He had decorated the shop beautifully and it all had to be dismantled. The shop opened at eight-thirty this morning, he works hard for his living.

Tomorrow, I'll spend a couple of hours painting, then off to Norwich with Dilly and the children, early shopping for their presents. No Norwich shopping in December is my rule, I buy local or online. I'm sorry, but I can't cope with crowds.

9 comments:

Girlplustwo said...

what color? sage green? burnt orange?

Z said...

Our bedroom needs to be repainted, I think it will have to be Sage.

Ro's is sort of sand. Still a little patchy after the first coat, it looks rather pleasantly suede-like.

y.Wendy.y said...

I love Sage (not your Sage but the colour).

Now why did Al have to take those lovely decorations down? Couldn't he have left them up for Christmas?

Z said...

Darling, you haven't quite appreciated the smallness of the shop. He has shelves outside, which he had used for the decorations. There are also quite hideous and entirely naff bollards around the marketplace, one of which, just outside, he had used to tether a selection of Christmas trees to. All these have to be taken in every evening and put out again every morning. He also creates a window display for overnight, which can't be left in place during the day as it cuts out too much light.

Nearer the Festive Occasion (probably next week) he will put up lights and similar jollities inside the shop, and these can stay in place.

Sage is a lovely colour and a lovely person, prejudiced as I am.

How do we know said...

paiting on your own? Sounds terrific, esp since its ages since we did that.. or saw anyone else do it!

y.Wendy.y said...

Aaah. D'accord.

:O)

Z said...

I like a bit of home decorating, once in a while. The last house we lived in had really high Edwardian ceilings, this one, with its dinky little 2 metre high Tudor ones is easy. Mind you, Ro did the ceiling this time.

I like wallpapering best as it brings out the dormant perfectionist in me - all our walls are really uneven so you have to be careful not to go wonky, but I only wallpaper in impractical places like the bathroom and kitchen.

How do we know said...

:-) has anyone ever told you that your comments have a lot of humour in them? You really do know how to make people smile.. and God knows I am grateful for this one day when i can read blogs again at leisure...

Z said...

Thank you, darling. I receive such friendly comments (not that I object to being disagreed with) that I enjoy replying to the comments as much as the original blogging.

You work so hard and I worry about you. Do take care of yourself.
xxx