watch and learn, grasshopper.

so here it is, the day where the proverbial rubber meets the road on this little project of ours. in the next 72 hours, people will be trickling in from all over the shop to help us celebrate.

i can't believe the day is almost here.

when dom and i first started planning our sojourn out here, we looked upon it as a long, empty respite, where we'd have tons of free time to do whatever. i'd rebuild my business site. we'd play lots of guitars. we'd probably get bored here and there. it didn't quite work out this way. though we had lots and lots of fun, the month of july was an absolute blur. and that doesn't even really do justice to how fast the whole time felt. suffice it to say, it went quickly.

i feel like this shouldn't surprise me, as between planning, putting the house back together and working, we've been busy as one-armed paperhangers. and we're no less busy now, really; the difference right now is that the cavalry is here. the parents have arrived. this means two things: first, we get to see them for the first time since early 2004 and second, we are no longer responsible for absolutely everything. call taxis? don't have to do it. sort out the garden? don't have to do it. don't have to do it. deal with the boiler? don't have to do it. i rejoice in this not because i'm a lazy git, but because we have had a confusing year, and it's wonderful to not have to be in charge of EVERYTHING for once.

the only downside is that now that dom and i are no longer responsible for running the world, whatever it was that was keeping me perfectly healthy (give or take the odd bizarre ailment) has skipped town, and i've been in varying states of under-the-weather since everyone's arrived. but you know, that's okay. it is, because like i said: it's good, after all this planning, after everything we've dealt with this year, to get to be the kid again for a few minutes and just relax.

that, and one well-placed phone call from my father moved our boiler appointment up from the 25th to yesterday. believe me when i say i am watching and learning.