Episode 10: Remember, remember the 5th of November....

While many people remember the 5th of November because it is Guy Fawkes Day, in our family we remember this date because it is the birthday of our grandson Matthew. So on November 4, we designated Phil the Carpenter as "Keeper of the Keys" and took off for Matthew's house, about 200 miles away! (Happy third birthday, Dear Matthew!  May you have many happy moments with Thomas the Tank Train in the coming year!)

The roads were clear; the trip home went smoothly. When we returned today, I rushed into the studio to see what had been done. I was assailed by the pungent odor of wood stain, a necessary evil. After admiring the stained trim boards, the interior windows that had been given their frames and paint, and the expanded back porch, I threw open the doors in spite of the chilly weather and turned on all the fans I could find in a vain attempt to rid the house of fumes. Before night fell, I went out for the ritual of photographing, and I now present the results:


Note the shelves in the pass-through and the completed interior window frame. The drawers on the lower right side of the pass-through (formerly known as our pantry) are part of the original pantry that we could salvage, built by the Irish carpenter for his family in 1892.

Here are the stained woodworks--the source of the pungent odor. In the morning, I'll open a window.

Here is our dachshund Hildegaard standing on the expanded back porch, looking into the studio.

What might she be thinking?

(This back porch was originally built by Mark Lutzenberger from South Milwaukee.  George's hometown is South Milwaukee, too; so he was pleasantly surprised to find out that Phil, the Keeper of the Keys Carpenter, is also from South Milwaukee and also attended Rawson Avenue Grade School--although much later than George.)