casa en obras…life in the restoration zone
Well…there are gummy bits of stripped paint on our kitchen floor and counters, and wedged into every nook and crevice of the treads of our shoes. I have little white freckles of primer on my skin that I can’t get off no matter how many showers I take. Our light fixtures have been replaced by naked bulbs in yellow safety cages hanging from holes in the walls and ceilings. Work has offically begun around here.
It’s exciting. It’s satisfying. It’s often fun, even. But it’s also tiring, time consuming, expensive, a bit overwhelming. Billy and I are definitely getting that adventure we’d hoped for. It’s not just home improvement. It’s archaeology, dammit. Did you know that there are seven–count ’em, seven–different colors of paint piled up on top of the lovely oak builtin in our kitchen? Yup. There’s white, brown, off-white, green, tan, more white and yellow in there before you hit wood. Or there were. At least four of those layers have now been stripped away.
Billy may never be the same, by the way. I’ve taken this sweet physical therapist from the upper west side and put him in Brooklyn with power tools in his hands. And get this–he’s really good with them!
In the midst of all of this, there hasn’t been a whole lot of knitting time. When I do manage to carve out some time to relax and knit, I’ve been really craving comfort knitting. Simple, small projects that require no thought. Just something soothing for my hands. So it’s been socks. I’m half done with the second sock of the latest Koigu pair. I’ll post a pic when that’s done. Nothing exciting. Just good ole’ Koigu yumminess in st st.
It’s funny…I had such big knitting plans for this time. The thought of Season right now though…It doesn’t appeal to me at all. I just don’t think I could concentrate on it the way I need to. So much brain energy being directed to other places. The house, my work, the writing. But also the reading. I’m taking a Proust course next semester. We’re reading all of In Search of Lost Time, and we have to have Swann’s Way read before our first class. Wonderful, wonderful stuff–I mean, I want to eat the pages–but it ain’t subway reading. I’m thinking this month and all of next semester might be one of socks and simple sweaters: Kyoto, when the replacement yarn comes, Rosedale when the kidnapped sleeve is sprung from storage, maybe some top-down raglans and percentage sweaters… and lots of lovely Koigu and Lorna’s Laces. I’m feeling so many demands from other quarters that merit my attention more than knitting these days. Which is okay… Knitting is part of what will help quiet me and keep me balanced in the face of all the work.
Just a heads up, though, to any readers who might be looking for acrobatic feats of knitting daring here. You probably won’t be seeing them for quite some time. Anyway, there are plenty of other knitting bloggers who do that kind of thing much better than yours truly.
Here’s to warm handknit socks with bits of lead paint chips stuck to the soles!
Wow, Cari, this is so exciting! I envy you, actually. As for socks and simple sweaters, well, you know that’s my rut. (OK, just socks. And hats!) Anyway, bring it on! We’ll still come over every day to read about it. 🙂
Posted by: alison
I feel your pain. I LOVE living in an old house. The work is never done but the charm and character of old spaces makes up for the work old places require. I think people who live in older homes feel more connected to their spaces as a result of the sweat equity you pour into your home. I am excited to see your ongoing restoration and I love the pictures.
Posted by: max
Acrobatic feats of knitting? Like knitting on a trapeze? Knitting a net for the trapeze act? Handstand knitting?
I can’t believe there’s that much paint to strip away. Yuck! And yuck again! This is making me want to paint my apartment, though. I’m tired of the blue. And I want new floors. I think I might as well move.
And thanks for reminding me–I’m heading over to get those books today!
Posted by: Em
my dad just finished a readthrough of the entire series… he said it has spoiled him — all other books’ descriptive passages now seem short and perfunctory. and he stops and thinks to himself “but how did it smell? and taste? and what memories from childhood did it bring up? and was the wind blowing at the same time?” etc, etc, etc.
Posted by: carolyn
I think what I like best about my on-line friendships is watching progress, be it knitting or house-making or writing or just plain moving forward (or sideways or underneath or any other preposition you care to choose). We’ve gone beyond knitting now, haven’t we? I adore YOU, and like the gals said, we’ll come see you, whether or not you knit another stitch. I think it’s smart, though, the way you’re simplifying your knitting brain to make room for the other necessary complications right now.
and you make me want to read Proust, by the way. No fair. I have enough to read.
Posted by: Rachael
Tell me about it! Our kitchen is nearing completion (we did all the work ourselves), and we ripped it *completely* apart in August. We found 6 different layers of nasty wallpaper, along with about 6 different layers of nasty linoleum.
Happy Home Depot trips! Goodness knows we made enough of them, I’m sure you are too!
Posted by: Lisa
Wow, Cari, this is so exciting! I envy you, actually. As for socks and simple sweaters, well, you know that’s my rut. (OK, just socks. And hats!) Anyway, bring it on! We’ll still come over every day to read about it. 🙂
Posted by: alison
I feel your pain. I LOVE living in an old house. The work is never done but the charm and character of old spaces makes up for the work old places require. I think people who live in older homes feel more connected to their spaces as a result of the sweat equity you pour into your home. I am excited to see your ongoing restoration and I love the pictures.
Posted by: max
Acrobatic feats of knitting? Like knitting on a trapeze? Knitting a net for the trapeze act? Handstand knitting?
I can’t believe there’s that much paint to strip away. Yuck! And yuck again! This is making me want to paint my apartment, though. I’m tired of the blue. And I want new floors. I think I might as well move.
And thanks for reminding me–I’m heading over to get those books today!
Posted by: Em
my dad just finished a readthrough of the entire series… he said it has spoiled him — all other books’ descriptive passages now seem short and perfunctory. and he stops and thinks to himself “but how did it smell? and taste? and what memories from childhood did it bring up? and was the wind blowing at the same time?” etc, etc, etc.
Posted by: carolyn
I think what I like best about my on-line friendships is watching progress, be it knitting or house-making or writing or just plain moving forward (or sideways or underneath or any other preposition you care to choose). We’ve gone beyond knitting now, haven’t we? I adore YOU, and like the gals said, we’ll come see you, whether or not you knit another stitch. I think it’s smart, though, the way you’re simplifying your knitting brain to make room for the other necessary complications right now.
and you make me want to read Proust, by the way. No fair. I have enough to read.
Posted by: Rachael
Tell me about it! Our kitchen is nearing completion (we did all the work ourselves), and we ripped it *completely* apart in August. We found 6 different layers of nasty wallpaper, along with about 6 different layers of nasty linoleum.
Happy Home Depot trips! Goodness knows we made enough of them, I’m sure you are too!
Posted by: Lisa