It was the best of times, and oh yes – the worst of times
The bathroom is coming right along. Unfortunately, we’ve hit a wee snag – the tile did not come in this weekend, which means that we might not have our toilet & sink hooked up by the time the inlaws arrive (which makes me very, very sad. not just for them, but for me).
The architect slaved away on the bathroom all weekend. The walls are 100% done! YAY! AND, although I don’t have photographic evidence right now, the shower walls and the floor are a beautiful shade of red (from the waterproofing).
As soon as the tile arrives, the architect will take a day off to install the tile, and then, 36-ish hours later, we will grout. THEN, 24-ish hours later, we will sand & paint the walls this color(ish): (I think – I’m not great with color)
Anyways – the architect assures me that our vintage mauve will took fantastic in the black and white bathroom. (Our color might be a bit lighter and slightly browner.)
After the painting, we will put in the wainscoting (which will be white), and one wall (minimum) of shower tiles. At that point, the plumber can come back & hook everything up. If the tiles come this week, that means that the floor could be in by Friday, and then on Friday (my day off), I could start sanding (with clear instructions, I can do lots of stuff!), and then hopefully we could paint & wainscot on Saturday/Sunday, and maybe even do the one shower wall, and then could have the plumber come in on the 23rd (Friday) to hook up before the in-laws showed up. Of course, all of that is contingent on the tile arriving in a timely fashion this week. *fingers crossed*
In other good news – I got to watch my friend Jen finish a 31 mile run on her 31st birthday. She ran the entirety of Wildwood Trail (30 miles) + an extra mile in honor of her birthday. She finished strong in 6:19ish, and looked great at the finish line. (Also looking great at the finish line? Celebratory champagne and cupcakes! YAY!)
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Yesterday, I went to pick tomatoes, and as I filled up my bowl, I emptied the bowl into my (normal sized) kitchen sink. By the time I picked everything ripe (i.e. maybe 1/2 of the tomatoes out there), my kitchen looked like this:
Just in case you’re curious, after peeling, coring & seeding all those tomatoes, that is approximately 13 qts of chopped tomatoes.
Do you know how long it takes to can 17 pints of salsa & 8.5 qts of marinara?
FIFTEEN YEARS!
Or, more accurately, about 7 hours. By 8 pm last night, my kitchen looked like a murder scene, and I looked like a serial killer who bathed in the blood of my victims. It was pretty awesome.
I can’t wait to do it all again in 2-3 weeks when I’m sure I’ll have another sink and a half of tomatoes! (I’m serious – I love canning, and when the next batch is ready, I’m guessing it won’t be 90 degrees.)
Next up – maybe another 6 pints of salsa (we go through about 2/month on average; another 3-4 qts of marinara (1/month here), and then FUN things! Like ketchup! And whole tomatoes! And maybe soup. YAY!
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When I hit the trail, I hit it HARD!
And now, for the worst of times. I was on a trail run yesterday morning (before tomato-palooza), having a grand time. The best run I’d had since my 15.5 miler (also a trail run) at the end of July. Everything was going so well. I felt great. I was happy with my pace. I’d hit my turn around right on schedule, and was FLYING (relatively speaking) back to my car. About 1.25 miles from the trailhead, I bit it. Unlike last time, I didn’t transition directly from upright to faceplant. This was more of a slow motion fall.
I hit pretty hard on the left side of my body. So hard, in fact, that one of my water bottles, after digging into my side, flew off my fuel belt and landed several feet down the trail (behind me). My right hand is a little bruised and swollen, I have some cuts on my left hand, some pretty bruises in the vicinity of my right knee, and a little road rash on my left elbow. I can feel the deep bruising on the left side of my back, but the best part of my body is my left leg below the knee.
This picture doesn’t really do it justice, since I just took it now, sitting at my desk at work (those of you who followed my exciting foot photo series will recognize the carpet), but I’m thinking I’ll have some spectacular bruising in a day or so…..
(Please note that my calf isn’t that humungous, but it’s hard to take a picture of your own leg and not get a weird angle.)
That is beautiful, right?
I hurt all over my body. My left side especially. It hurts to move. And to sit. And to lay still, even. It especially hurts to be headbutted by affectionate cats. (On a completely unrelated note – does anyone want to buy a used cat?)
I’m hoping this heels up pretty quickly!
Happy week, everyone! Watch out for gravity!
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