Discombobulated

Yup, that about sums it up.  We have been without a kitchen for almost 4 weeks and it's really starting to get to me. I started off with the best of intentions, with several frozen casseroles that only required thawing and heating in the microwave, along with no-cook options like sandwiches or crackers, cheese, and raw veggies. By the end of the first week we had only had to resort to take-out food once. We didn't do as well the second week. Whenever we used real dishes we had to cart them upstairs to hand wash them in the bathroom sink, then cart them all back downstairs. We've been using (gasp!) paper plates and napkins to make life a little easier through the construction. I keep reminding myself that it's only temporary, and that it will all be worth it in the end.

The other discombobulating part of this whole experience is that it's not just the kitchen that has been out of commission. Our laundry room is being moved, and will take a bite out of the existing office, which necessitated moving all of my office stuff to another room, where there really isn't room for it all. My desk and cabinet are still in the office, covered with plastic and gathering dust. Anytime I need to access something in the filing cabinet, I have to troop through the (very cold) garage and into the office from the other direction because there is a temporary plastic sheeting wall separating the construction space from the part of the house we're still living in to keep the dust down. Any one of these inconveniences by itself isn't all that bad, but the combination, for 3 weeks and counting, and on the heels of the snowstorm and subsequent power outage has just worn me down.

On the upside, we're finally really close to finished.

The granite counter tops will be installed tomorrow and I just can't wait. We're still waiting on propane for the gas stove, but by Saturday morning I should have a kitchen sink that I can use. Yay!

The laundry room is all but finished as well, and the wood has already been delivered for the paneling in the sun room. Whew! This has been a really long haul!

Throughout it all I have had a harder time concentrating on daily tasks, and it's a struggle to get in to work these days. I'm sure when I can move my desk back to the office and be able to access what I need, and FIND what I need, I will feel more in control. And perhaps more ready to start new projects.

Today I have a massage scheduled. It's not one of those feel-good relaxing massages, this is with my favorite massage therapist (who's also a mother of teenagers and a very nice person) and she manages to find every knot and tight muscle and wrestle them into submission. This is often painful, but the end result is always worth it.

Perhaps after the massage, and getting the kitchen finished up, and a good run on Saturday morning, I'll feel like life is getting back to normal.We have a big nor'easter blowing and snowing up the coast today, but it doesn't look like it will dump much snow, if any, on our little piece of the coastline. Now that we're into March and almost into spring, we should be past any more big snowstorms this year. Phew! We're still cleaning up from the last one (one of our big pines fell into our neighbor's yard and now that the snow has melted, we've been cutting it up and hauling it away). And then, after we settle back in after all the construction, I'm off to Germany with my youngest son and the high school German teacher and various other students and parents for 10 days in Bavaria. Guess I can say that life isn't dull around here.

Shelley in CT