And so on. There is a difference. Being a sports fan, I equate remodeling with running a marathon. At the beginning you believe and hope you'll make it to the end, where you can rest with the satisfaction of a race well run. For us, the beginnings have always been the most exciting time.
Workmen arrive at sunup and map out the game plan over steaming mugs of coffee.
We stretch out the beginning as long as possible because we know the middle comes next. We learn to measure the temperature by sweater layers, the rain's intensity by bucket drips per minute, and the wind's speed by the flutter of the Visquine. We were two seasons behind schedule. Roberta was pregnant, the roof was completely torn off, and the windy City By The Bay had a freak snow. Icewater dribbled onto the toilet for two days.