It doesn't look like much now...

Though my house is still in shambles, I saw Mr. U today for the first time in two weeks.  There are two reasons for this...  One, there was a death in his family this week and two, the next stage of our renovations wasn't ready yet.

Sometime at the beginning of September Tetsu and I made some changes in the original renovation plans and decided to forgo some things in order to do other things.  And we made the big decision to have our kitchen redone!  Originally we hadn't planned to have anything major done in the kitchen (because I don't much like cooking anyway) but we did want to get the stained, molding, chipping linoleum floor changed.  And Mr. U informed us that to put in wood floors the whole counter and sink section had to be taken out.  And if we were going to go THAT far, then we decided to have the whole sink/counter/stove taken out and replaced.  And that's the part we've been waiting for.

It was ordered... and Mr. U was ready to install it...  The old standing cupboard had been taken out weeks ago leaving me with condiments and utensils and pots and pans all in different boxes around the house. The floor was HALF laid...waiting for the busy day when the old counter would come out, new floor would get laid and the new counter put in... but no new counter.  The factory is backlogged and there was nothing Mr. U could do until a delivery was made.  So there I've been, my kitchen spread out in numerous rooms, with me stepping over appliances and boxes that line the kitchen floor.

And then Mr. U has been dealing with the passing of his brother, which not only is probably upsetting but also, because of various superstitions, entails that carpenters and construction workers , (and I suppose fishermen and many other sorts of somewhat dangerous jobs) do not work during the mourning period.  Mr. U has never really SAID that that was the reason he couldn't come but Tetsu explained it as a pretty common practice among the older generation of carpenters...

But today, period of mourning or not, the kitchen factory wanted to make the delivery.  FINALLY my kitchen is ready to be installed!  So Mr. U came early and supervised the unloading of the truck... to my front yard!  My kitchen, all in Styrofoam and boxes is going to sit in the yard for the next four days!  Until Mr. U's family circumstances are completely settled.

Unfortunately the weather forecast is RAIN for this weekend...  Mr. U wrapped up the pile of boxes securely in a couple of tarps before he headed off home.