Closer And Closer

There is only one tradesman now left in our house.  And that is Arnold.  Arnold is a master tile-setter and he is in the process of tiling the backsplash behind the range and the entire wall of 'Joe's Coffee Corner'.  Hopefully he will complete the job today before the start of the Christmas weekend.

It is very quiet around here with everyone gone.

Here's what's been happening.....

Fred the plumber installs the sink.

Pretty faucet!

The sink is in!

I could never be a plumber!  My ass is too big.

The dishwasher is goin' in!

Perfect plumbing.

We are using the damaged refrigerator during the Christmas holidays until the replacement issues with the moving company get resolved.

Dave the electrician begins to install our dining room light fixture from Poland.

Joe gives Dave a hand hanging the glass shade.  You can tell by the grimace on Joe's face how heavy it is.

The photo does not do this light fixture justice as it fairly glows when it is lit.  

Joe and I have had many a conversation as to whether the electrical cord should be taut or loose.  Loose is the fashionable European way.  Joe likes it loose; I like it taut.  We took a poll of the tradesmen and they voted with Joe.  Loose it is then.

The fun of filling the drawers and cupboards.  We have lots of storage space now.  LOTS!  Even though we did a big purge before the kitchen renovation started, we are still in the process of getting rid of stuff.  We make daily trips to the local second-hand store.

Joe's first cup of coffee in his new kitchen!  He is patiently waiting for his hand-built double Italian espresso maker to arrive.  Apparently it has left the port of Naples and is on its way across the Mediterranean and Atlantic seas into Joe's loving embrace.  He can hardly wait to give it a place of honour in 'Joe's Coffee Corner'.

Arnold, master tile-setter.  This man does amazing work.

We've chosen glass tiles for the backsplash.

Beautiful work, Arnold.

But it has not been all fun and games around here these past few days.  Here is a cautionary tale:

Our cat Daisy has become very ill due to the extreme stress she has suffered throughout this renovation.

Daisy is one tough cat.  She is a warrior.  She has ripped screens out of windows so that she can jump down 2 stories and escape into the wilds of our back field.  She is fast.  She is smart.  She has disappeared for days at a time only to return with a mouse in her mouth and a look on her face that says, "What're you looking at?"  In short, she is a survivor.  

But this renovation has almost done her in.  As soon as the workmen arrived every morning at 8:00am, she would head for Will's basement bedroom and hide.  Even though I put water and food in the room for her, she stayed under his bed the whole day.  She'd only emerge in the evening, hours after everyone had left the house.  I thought nothing of it.  Until Monday.

Daisy-Mae

She started vomiting and making these really weird sounds I'd never heard a cat make before.  We took her immediately to the veterinarian's.  It was determined she had a severe bacterial infection in her bladder brought on by living under a bed for the past month and going without water for 10 hours a day.  I felt terrible!

She spent 2 days at the vet's hooked up to an IV being rehydrated and receiving strong antibiotics.  I thought that would cure her.  Nope.  The vomiting continued.  And she got more and more sick.

As a result of exploratory surgery, it was discovered that Daisy's pancreas and liver were failing due to the raging infection and the extreme stress she had been suffering.  

The incessant staccato of the nail gun would have been like living in a war zone for her.

You have no idea how guilty I felt when the veterinarian gave us that news.  This renovation was literally killing our cat!  Had I known how this would affect Daisy, I would have shipped her out to stay with our daughters for the duration of the renovation.  I had no idea.  None.  Many of our friends have renovated with a house full of animals and not one cat or dog has fallen ill.

Daisy may come home with us tonight.  She has stitches in her belly and a feeding tube sticking out from her neck.  Joe is meeting with the doctor this afternoon to learn how to use the feeding tube.  Wish him luck.  And please say a wee prayer for Daisy, who through no fault of her own has gotten gravely ill due to our ignorance.

I am hoping Daisy uses all of her strength and tenacity to get well.  We will care for her tenderly over the Christmas holidays and hopefully she will make a full recovery.

Stay tuned....