As time goes by ...

The house is echoing to the roar of a floor polisher's drum sander, and it's brought back memories.

We moved in 22 years ago and the first priority was to get rid of the ghastly mustard coloured carpet and polish the boards.

When the boards were revealed we got one of those moments when the swan that was expected turned out to be an ugly duckling :(

All the old boards were cupped to buggery. A product of post-war austerity in building supplies.

It was a hot summer and my partner was 8 months pregnant. The pressure was on to get it done before the baby popped.

While I wrestled with the drum sander in one room my partner was down on hands and knees punching in nails. And puffing but nary a complaint, god bless her. It took what felt like forever.

Cos of the time constraints, I finished the floors spraying on a couple of coats of poly with an airless gun. Not optimal but the surface was good up to a few years ago.

The baby popped in a text-book labour. The missus woke me up at 6am saying the contractions were coming hard. She leant against me in the back yard and puked on my bare feet. I drove her to the labour ward while she was really huffing and puffing, took one wrong turn in my nervousness and got a restrained complaint about my incompetence. On arrival the midwife was unconcerned til she put her hand on Helen's back to feel a contraction, and her eyebrows went up. The only drama was during the 'transition' when Helen said she'd had enough and wanted to go home. Standard stuff apparently, but I couldn't offer to take over.

Now that bub is studying for a term in the US and doing well, academically and socially. We fear we will loose her to the Land of the 'Free'.

Meantime, the floor polisher is going gangbusters. We chose him cos he did next door's floors and it was a quality job. Three coats of 2-pack poly.

I'm no longer up to that kind of work but have been doing the repainting in the two rooms being redecorated. Jeez I hate painting. There's 34 m of ornate 150 mm cornices and two huge ceiling roses. Plus picture rails, windows and endless architraves and skirting boards. Got what feels like a permanent crick in the neck.

I like Arendt's distinction between labour and work. Labour is about the endless resupply and repair that life demands of us. Work is lasting. Like a good bit of woodwork or a friend helped over a crisis.

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Originally Posted by rsser

It was a hot summer and my partner was 8 months pregnant. The pressure was on to get it done before the baby popped.

I'm no longer up to that kind of work but have been doing the repainting in the two rooms being redecorated. Jeez I hate painting. There's 34 m of ornate 150 mm cornices and two huge ceiling roses. Plus picture rails, windows and endless architraves and skirting boards. Got what feels like a permanent crick in the neck.

I like Arendt's distinction between labour and work. Labour is about the endless resupply and repair that life demands of us. Work is lasting. Like a good bit of woodwork or a friend helped over a crisis.

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Sounds like you got a good partner. My SWMBO assisted in digging a post hole with a two person (notice my PC description :) ) motorised digger while 8 months pregnant. I was on the other end, she wasn't by herself, and her extra weight was beneficial before the auger caught on a root!

I know what you mean with the painting. An acquaintance had a ceiling with those inticate roses. He painstakingly picked out the rose in about six colours. Now that was a labour of love.

Regards
Paul

What a hoot. Weight, and good will, count for a lot.

Worth cultivating.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by rsser

What a hoot. Weight, and good will, count for a lot.

Worth cultivating.

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Pun intended?:roflmao:

My best puns are inadvertent :rolleyes:

Great reading Ern. I remember the trips too. Also making tea and having to drink it myself.:D
Same experience with floorboards. If they're covered it's for a reason and usually not a good one.

This floor guy is doing a great job. He's on time and thorough. Damned if I know how he got such a good finish with just #80 on his drum sander.

I'm under his orders to do a couple of filling jobs once the first coat of poly dries. Just to get it right before he comes back tomorrow for the second.

But crumbs, the fumes. Eyes running and sneezes.

...

Kids: got three and they're great people. The first, with the ex, was popped after a long and horrible induced labour and emergency Cesarean.

I was there through it, and after the doc plucked the kid from the womb he was placed in my arms while the stitching was done. Oh wow. Had never held a baby before and this little fella was bright-eyed and a wonder. The world shifted on its axis. (Yeah, I know, that feeling is not unique).

So if my three are at all representative of the next generation, with all the challenges we face, then maybe humans have half a chance of surviving.

[QUOTE=rsser;1583199] But crumbs, the fumes. Eyes running and sneezes.

QUOTE]

Ern

My impression has always been that you should vacate the house for a couple of days for this reason. If you and/or your partner are susceptible to the floor product you need to be careful to avoid adverse reactions. The house floor is such a large area compared to a cabinet or other woodworking project. On top of that flooring finishes are often a two pack product.

Do be wary :cool: .

Regards
Paul

Thanks for the heads-up Paul.

Yeah, this is 2-pack poly.

Fumes have cleared out now, and over the next two days with the two rooms we can open windows for flow-through between them and shut off doors to the rest of the house.

I'll have a chat with the floor guy about protection for his airways.