Happy Fourth! with various forms of marking it

Today is a wonderful summer's day, the kind you think about in February, just right for painting the staircase.  What? on a holiday?  well, in fact practically everyone I've talked to in the last few days is busy doing things like this. Fireworks were Saturday night, lovely display, perfect evening, celebratory dinner was Friday night.

But now, on the actual holiday, Handsome Son is at work, maybe to the shore later, next door neighbor driving in a convoy to Florida helping another friend retire there, with all her worldly goods in a UHaul, various relatives driving. 

She refused to let the convoy move off until she'd opened the UHaul trailer to show me the progress of the snake plant that spent a summer with me and was very happy on my patio, never looked back. I hadn't seen it since since she lived north of here, and won't see it again, since it will live in Florida.  It was like saying goodbye to a student!

The move involved many doublings back and forward to distribute people, vehicles, furniture, and so on, made me tired just watching. My part is to water his garden while he's away.

Another friend is busy organizing another household move. So my painting the stairs isn't too much of a departure.

I'm definitely down with using tape.  Got a nice gallon of paint, yes, actually bought one, the two possibles from the dumpster turning out to be solid material.  Taped up the stair wall and around the treads to save the rug, this was the dull bit which I did last night. 

Then today, only painting below the tape, to fix the most beat up part of the wall, the upper part never getting marked up, took a bit over an hour and a bit.  And I noted that ancient law of nature that dictates that when you paint walls, you're sure you've caught all of it, no missed bits, no wobbly edges.  Then as soon as the brushes and pads are washed and all the gear is away again, bingo, you see a little bit here and there.  So you get a little plate of paint and touch them up and nobody knows the difference, unless you blog about it, of course.  And the staircase looks a whole lot better now.

So this is very pleasing, the color named Sunflower Seed, and both arms are still working.

Meanwhile, of course the Dollivers ran up the flag in a waving field of wildflowers, planted from seed saved by Boud from last year, and retired to the Adirondack chair with a big glass of lemonade, and patriotic songs from Elton.  

Boud bitterly suggested Sixteen Tons might be a good theme for her today, but was swept away in a tide of anthems, fruited plains and all the rest of it.

And we all wish you a great day, if it's your Independence Day, happy all of us, and let's keep on working to improve everything, plenty of scope. If it's just a Monday where you live, well, enjoy it anyway!