"So many changes. I no keep up. It different,"said Darlusz Zabagaiski, the Polish Frog said amid the construction material and shifted around furniture in the house.
Darlusz, for the unitiated, is the plastic/ceramic frog that serves as a household muse and conversation piece. He likes making an occasional guest appearance in this blog.
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Darlusz compares our new kitchen floor, brown, top
left, to the ugly old lineleum floor. |
"I know, isn't it great,?" I said, as I tripped over a box of flooring that was ready to be installed.
The St. Albans, Vermont house Darlusz, Jeff and I live in is in the throes of a major transformation, thanks to Jeff, who is both a design expert and somebody who can't stand life unless he has some nice big projects going on.
Because of Jeff's hard work, the front deck was replaced, a new floor appeared on the kitchen and living room. He installed carpeting in a bedroom, refinished the kitchen cupboards, painted the shed, and did plenty of other projects that are too much to count. All this happened just in the past month.
Oh, and Jeff is overseeing the replacement of the entire west wall of the living room, and it will become mostly glass, to capture the great view of the Champlain Valley.
Darlusz and I are exhausted just thinking about all this, and Jeff's the one doing all the work.
"Yez. it nice, but I confused. So much new stuff. Da boxes everywhere. Da floor, it new color. No used to dat. Da new baseboards, make da wall different and I bump into it. Why you take out the big window in the living room? It plywood now. Look awful. Can't see da bugs fly by outside dat I can eat," Darlusz whined.
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Darlusz inspects the old window we're removing from the
house. Sheetrock was removed to prepare for the work. |
"Oh, relax, it will be done soon enough. That plywood is going to become a big glass wall, you can see all the bugs you want. But it will probably make you hungrier because the bugs will be outdoors. And you have to admit the new floor and baseboards are gorgeous," I said.
"Yah, but I no good at change. Took me months to get good again when I move here from Poland two year ago," Darlusz said.
"You'll get used to it soon enough, and you will love it. I guarantee it. I already love it. And I sure don't miss that awful window in the living room. It was leaky, you couldn't see out it that well because of condensation, and worse, it was attracting carpenter ants," I said.
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Darlusz hunts in vain for insects to eat on the great new floor
in our kitchen and living room. |
"But I love doz carpenter ant. Day tasty," Darlusz said.
"You can only eat so many of those. And besides, you're gaining weight," I said. There will be plenty of bugs for you even without the carpenter ants. And if they're not enough, I'll even buy some for you."
"You do dat for me,?" Darlusz asked.
"Absolutely. As long as you help me move these empty flooring boxes out of the kitchen," I replied.
"You good man," Darlusz said.
"Thanks. But you should really thank Jeff. He's the one responsible for all these great home improvements," I said.
