Our sweet old farmhouse needs a lot of things badly, but perhaps none was as urgent as a new kitchen floor (yes, Maria was right…). The old linoleum was worn out, greasy, disintegrating, ugly and dispiriting. The new kitchen floor, even unfinished, has made a huge difference in the feel of the back of the house. I love the colors Maria chose and this funky old kitchen has been given a new spirit and life. We will do our bathroom shortly in blue and  yellow, brightening up the end of the house.

It is rewarding to fix up a house, ours will be done slowly and carefully, but it will be done. I don’t have to worry about Maria and Joe, she is already losing interest now that the tiles are in. But he is a nice man, and he does neat work.