We achieved a decade-old irritant today by finishing our work on the new Pole Barn South Side, replacing an ugly plastic window with a real one surrounded by barn wood and repaired by our Amish neighbors.

It was a beautiful day to be outside and a good start to my return to everyday life. Finally, things are warming up. I took my first shower in almost a month. It felt great.

It bugged both of us to see that plastic on the side of our old barn. We wanted to bring back “Barn Integrity,” as we called it. Our Amish friends put up the new wood frame. The old window was in the barn attic.

The black tape lets the birds know this is glass and keeps them from flying into it.

Good news:  I can shower now and wear socks for the first time in a month. I still have to wear a surgical boot today for one more week. Still, I was delighted to put a sock on and go outside and help Maria paint the barn out.

I’m not supposed to be standing up for too long, so I sometimes sat down and took pictures. It was both satisfying and fun. I planted some more flowers in the garden bed as well.

It was a great lift to be helpful and valuable and paint today. I’ve felt useless and of little use over the past few weeks. I love this shot of Maria painting from the inside.

Below shows what the barn side looked like when we started.