Maria had another restoration attack this weekend, she decided it’s time to brighten up our dining room, the darkest room in the farmhouse, the one that gets the least amount of direct sunlight. She painting the lower panel of the walls a salmon color, and the ceiling a brighter color called “Turquoise Twist.”

She had the mad and obsessed look in her eye that she gets when she fixates on a project and we rushed to the hardware store to mix and buy the paint, Brian there knows the drill. She came home, cleared off the table, threw up tarps and plastic covers over everything and went to work.

I retreated to my study to write, my standing on table days with a paint brush are over, she says. I know better than to meddle. Updates to come. This one won’t take long.