Today was a bit of a change in the "put the garage back together again" story. With the slab poured 3 weeks ago, it's cured to the point that it's nice and smooth and hard enough for more sustained use.
I had repatriated all the stuff I'd stashed in self-storage way back in October--four car loads on Monday, and a final one on Tuesday--and I closed out my account there. Things are freezing up here, so I also stopped by the paint store and got a couple more cans of primer for the lowest part of the walls, where the concrete foundation footings are now exposed, and tested some paints in there. Chris liked the old 1930's paint scheme, a greenish aqua that would look appropriate on a Hollywood starlet's swimming pool from that era, so we tried a couple of samples out, one appropriately named "Shallow End" and the other "Pale Cactus". A not-so-blind eye test showed that Pale Cactus was the winner, so a gallon of that in semi-gloss will be another weekend or weekday project. Being at home full-time means there's lots and lots of time for projects, even with the work-from-home responsibilities. There'll be some shifting around of stuff from one side of the garage to the other as I paint around the footings, but that was another reason for rescuing the stuff from storage and bringing it home: I had stashed away three wire racks with wheels, so now all those boxes can be pushed around a lot easier on the garage's super smooth floor.
This morning was bright and sunny with just a few high clouds--a good day for a run in the park, and something that's permitted under those "shelter-in-place" orders from the governor a couple of days ago. It'll be the first day I've left the house, and it felt good, but a little odd. Those Bird and Lyft and whatever scooters were all kicked over, people aren't too thrilled to be using them now, and there wasn't a whole lot of traffic but it wasn't dead. I ran by the tennis courts, now closed, and thought that'd be a great temporary hospital site when the time comes, sooner rather than later. Lots of joggers and the like, and a bit more graffiti on the Bridle trail bridge over the 163, but nothing outrageous. People were really doing the social distancing thing as I ran towards them, which was interesting, it's already getting ingrained. Down the Prado, there were little small twosomes and threesomes sitting at the tables in front of the Museum of Art, all carefully separated, and around the Conservatory I could hear the bang bang bang of construction continuing at the new Children's Zoo. With the zoo closed, there wasn't the typical weave and bob through the 9am crowds, and I spotted two dozen green-crowned parrots gorging on the coral tree flowers in the parking lot, cackling and squawking and having a great time breakfasting. And while traffic was light, on that home stretch people just didn't bother slowing down much for 4 way stops on Florida St and again at Texas St. Uh, people, we're living a slower way of life now as we wait things out, you don't need to roll through stop signs at 25mph, they're still required and not suddenly optional.
Came home, did a couple of loads of laundry and put it on the clothesline for some nice sunlight disinfection, and cleaned out out a space in the "laundry room" for brother-in-law Tim and his teenager. It looks good now with Dri-dek vinyl raised floor tiles, our camp table, and a couple of chairs. Lighting can be better, and I realized I could dig out some heavy-duty patio string lights from boxes formerly trapped in the storage unit and make it a bit cheerier appearing; right now it's got just a circular florescent fixture that is very Utility Room. And I've only been able to paint one wall to Swiss Coffee, the other are the older "Sir Dredge" dark flat gray-green and just make the room feel just dingy and small.
On such a bright beautiful day like today I'm thinking I can make that room better, and that room needs a serious rebranding. The high concrete slab floor was removed as part of the foundation work, and the new floor level is 15 inches below what it was. Previously I could lay my hand flat on the ceiling if I was wearing shoes, and I'm not that tall of a person, but since the foundation folks have reconstructed the floors it feels more like a tall daylight basement or 'garden apartment' since it's at the same level as part of the backyard. Who knows, in the upcoming depression maybe it'll need to be a garden apartment... so many people seem to suddenly be out of a job, seems like there will be some massive reshuffling in the upcoming months of people heading back to those spare rooms at their parents or close friends or wherever. How long can people not pay rent these days?
Anyways, teenager did some artwork and read some, as did Tim, and I puttered in the yard. Chris made them some mac-and-cheese, and both cats came out to sit in the sun. Springtime is here, and while the news is anxiously awful, flowers are blooming and birds are chirping and life does indeed go on, despite the abrupt and rapid changes of just the last 28 days or so.