Next Installment

Tom and I went to New Orleans last week to help my brother get some work done on his house and to help him with his printing/embroidery business. I manned the two embroidery machines working on hats and shirts for workers on an offshore rig while Tom worked on the quarter round molding for the living room floor. My brother and his wife are moving to Houston this summer because of a good job opportunity for his wife. His business caters to so many out-of-town clients these days it will not be too difficult for him to change locations and wait to build up a local presence in the Houston area at a later date. It is almost impossible to find workers due to the shortage throughout the Mississippi/Louisiana areas hit by Katrina. So everything takes at least twice as long as it would under normal conditions. We are experiencing the same thing with our house construction. The sheetrockers have been due for almost 2 weeks but the contractor can't get a crew together. The builder is as frustrated as we are.

But we are making plans for moving in anyway. We bought a sofabed and a dining room table and chairs yesterday. They will hold it for us at the warehouse and deliver it in 2-3 days when we give the call. Our plan is to have these delivered and move in as soon as the ink is dry on the contract. Then we'll get the things from storage and mom's house put away and finally get the furniture and all the rest of the stuff delivered from Houston. It will be so good to have all our things together under one roof again; to actually have our own home again. We're already making plans for a 'selamatan' or open house as soon as it is presentable.

Here is what the brick looks like. I'm really pleased with the way it is turning out. Our neighbor down and across the street told me he likes the brick we chose very much. It is always a relief to hear that someone else likes the decisions you make.

The front of the house will look much better once the trim is all painted white. The front door will be stained and not painted.
My uncle, the landscape architect in New Orleans, is drawing up a plan for the yard. He and my aunt spent the night at my parent's house and we all went to Hattiesburg on Saturday so he could see the 'lay of the land' so to speak. We have some drainage challenges to resolve around the back and sides. I'm looking forward to seeing his ideas. I love the work he has done around New Orleans (the NO zoo, the Moon Walk, Washington Artillery Park, etc.) so I'm sure this will be just what is needed, functional and beautiful at the same time.