Read Between Designs: Time doesn't really fly...really it doesn't.

Ok, so has it really been almost a month? I can't believe how fast time goes by in this crazy life of mine! So much has happened, and I have a few things I'd like to post about. I think in the interest of time I will pick one bean from the belly of my life and go with it....

Last week, seriously crazy amounts of work! I've been "courting" with a lodge in Park City to do some work for them since last fall and have done a few tables for them here and there, but haven't been able to get to "second base" and do some counters for them. The business manager for the lodge saw me at the home show last fall and has been trying ever since to convince the owners of the individual units to give me a try. They have had cold feet about trying out a product they weren't familiar with, even though I was about half the price of the expensive granite they were looking at. Well, I got my break, one of the tenants burned the Formica tops in one unit and agreed to pay for the counters to be replaced/repaired. Since the existing counters were Formica, he was not willing to foot the bill for the high end granite the owner wanted, so that is where I came in. After 4 very full days of working well into the morning hours and sleeping for a few hours there at the lodge I was able to complete 2 kitchens and 5 bathrooms in 2 of the 13 or so units! It was a ton of work, but was actually very enjoyable. I realized a few times how much I really love what I do!! How great it is to take an obnoxiously pink counter top and turn it into a custom made stone finish. These very dated units are now styling with high end artistic counters. How fun is my job!?

How fun is my job?! Did I hear you ask that? Well...can I just tell you all the little quirky things I love about what I do?? Ok, I thought so. I love the smells of masking tape, and plastic drape, cans of plaster and tubs of paint. I love the sound of metal on aggregate as I caress the plaster with my trowel, really, that is one of my favorite sounds ever. My heart beats a little faster when I see possibilities of change and beauty at my fingertips. I smile to see the colors and chemicals dancing in front of me creating a tango of colors, and a pattern of playfulness. I enjoy the challenge of making a crazy idea spill from my imagination to the selected surface and holding my breath when it takes a little more luck than I may have at a given moment to achieve. I feel empowered by the vibrations of a power tool in my hands. The smell of sawdust, need I say more? Watching what a torch can do with colors, bubbles, cork and any number of special ingredients always makes me all warm and fuzzy inside. I love the final stages of unmasking and tweaking to reveal the finished product. And last, but not least, I love the way that when I leave a job site, someone is happier, and a room is more beautiful than it was when I began my work.

So there it is, it's official. I am insane and I've now made it clear to all of you! Although I may have a rant about these secret little moments of mine, I really try to keep them all in check. I am generally able to blend into a crowd and keep my pockets full of my hidden passions, only to pull them out and smile at them in the quiet moments with just me and my canvas of the day. While I do love these things, I must tell you that there are certain aspects of my job that are far from glamorous or enjoyable. I feel a new paragraph coming on...

So you know that tape and plastic I mentioned? It is great for the first 20 min or so, but when that turns to hours of meticulously taping, thoughts of blue tape and plastic sheets might make me swear. Using my trowel is almost always enjoyable, except this past week I realized how painful it can be to trowel that many counters with a thumb throbbing from a recent "towel snapping" injury. When your glove is so tight on your swollen thumb that you can see your heartbeat in it as well as feel it, it no longer brings quite the same satisfaction as I grip the handle of my trowel. Nothing is more deflating than to watch the colors dance, and love the tango they created and then have the client say that she "doesn't really like that part" even though it looks just like the sample she picked. Lots of creating requires at times lots of supplies, all snug in totes that are handy but heavy. This particular job had 7 flights of stairs from one unit to the next. Heavy totes, lil ol me, and a hole lotta stairs is not equal to happiness. Quiet moments at 2 a.m. working in peace can be nice, but it also gives you a lot of time to think about my family at home and what they did while I was gone today, and hoping that they weren't sad when they went to bed without me there to tell them I love them and give them a hug and a kiss g'night. And last but not least, it is not my favorite part of my job when you go to turn in the keys and collect a pay-check only to find that the client has left for the day and can not be reached. Driving home for 1.5 hours with the thought the gap in my purse where a check should be nibbles at all the happy little thoughts I try to keep to myself until I finally just have to stop for the one thing that will bring peace back to my soul...chocolate. I'm better now.