Tuesday, March 20, 2007

Taking the garage out for a spin

Momentous occasion: last night we took the garage out for a test-drive. Yes: after three years of on-again, off-again construction, after losing a contractor who absconded with a pile of money without finishing the job and then watching helplessly as the unfinished structure was colonized by woodland creatures, after borrowing another wad of money to hire another contractor to finish the job, we now have a garage and guest room that are fully functional and ready for use.

It's not easy to get used to having a garage. For three years I've been zipping past the spot and parking farther up the hill and it's hard to get out of that habit, but for the past week or so I've remembered to park in the garage about half the time. It's everything I've ever wanted in a garage plus a lot more, and it got done in the nick of time because we have houseguests coming Wednesday night and we need that guest room to be up and running.

So last night we decided to take it for a trial spin, kicking all the tires first to make sure they were up to snuff. We sat in all the chairs, slept in the bed, showered in the bathroom, and tested all the light fixtures. After we turned off the lights, we noticed a bright green glow emanating from the kitchenette. Space aliens? No, the coffee maker has an illuminated dial so bright that if I held it aloft while rotating you'd swear I was a lighthouse. We had to turn the coffee-maker toward the wall and cover it up before we could sleep.

But sleep we did, and this morning we felt as if we'd finally awakened from a three-year nightmare. This garage is a real cream-puff. You ought to take it out for a spin!

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Congrats! You sound like a proud parent who has just given birth.

Bev said...

The birth metaphor is appropriate: this process has been like a long, painful pregnancy full of unexpected complications, but the end result should make it all worthwhile.