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At the Market, acrylic 16" x 20"
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Blog 26
2004 was the year of the move to our dream house, requiring a lot of
decluttering, packing and cleaning of the old house to get it ready
for selling. Cleaning out and painting a house with two active kids
and a dog was a challenge in itself.
Even though the
actual start of construction was the beginning of April, we had a lot
of running around to decide on materials. We had meetings with the
architects, the contractors, and the bank.
Despite all the
chaos around me, I still kept the promise to myself to deliver one
painting to every bi-monthly Arteast library exhibition. I had
started the acrylic painting “At the Market” (see above) for the show with
the theme shopping. I finally managed to finish the painting around
midnight the day before the hanging. It was still a close call.
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Construction, acrylic, 16" x 20"
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At
the end of March, I started the painting for the May exhibition with
the theme of metal. I decided to paint a construction site - very
fitting. This painting found its forever home in my parents’ house.
As my father is an architect, he fell in love with the image right
away.
We had decided to sell the house without an agent.
Once the house was on the market in early April, the stress was
immense. Keeping the house tidy and clean was impossible. I had a big
job of cleaning the house before each showing, including washing the
windows which always had marks of sticky fingers. At the end of May,
we had refused one purchase offer because we were not flexible with
our moving date. With the representation of the agent who had helped
us to buy our house in 1995, we finally sold the old house at the end
of July.
At the same time, we stressed because of the
problems with the construction of the new house. First, we found out
that loads of gravel were necessary to lift the house to prevent
flooding in the spring. Then, one delay followed the next. Sometimes,
I encountered workers sitting at the construction site because they
did not have the necessary materials. Once, the architect called to
tell me that the ordered tiles would not arrive in time for the four
tilers who would come the following day. He expected me to go to a
speciality store and order some that would be in stock, never
considering that I always had to bring two small children
along.
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Tulip drawing by myself, Dominic (7), Christine (3)
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I always loved being creative with my children. With my painting supplies already packed, my
children and I discovered a shop where we could paint pottery. One
time, both kids coloured a piggy bank. Dominic picked a soccer ball
and was careful to put the white and back colour of his design in the
right areas. Christine, on the other hand, used lots of colours
without planning and hesitation. I took my time to paint a plate with
grapes. After we finished, she declared that her plane was perfect.
Once the pottery was glazed and fired, I had to agree. Sometimes, it
would be best for all of us to plan less and create with the
enthusiasm of a child.
When we finally moved at the end of
August, we only had cold water, were waiting for the kitchen
appliances, and the installation of washer and dryer. We did not have
any shelves in the walk-in closet until the beginning of November.
Over the next three months, instead of enjoying our dream
home, we continued to live in a construction site. I continuously
waited for workers who often did not show up. In the end, I did not
even care anymore whether they installed the right materials. I just
wanted them to leave.
By the end of November, we hired a
lawyer because the construction did not move ahead. The inspector had
failed our house again during what was supposed to be the final
inspection. The costs exceeded the budget as building materials went
missing or got damaged while the construction company was not
cooperative. The nightmare affected my health. It was not a happy way
to end the year.
In my next blog, I will write about the
year 2005 that brought my biggest heartbreak.
