As I was logging out of my work computer on Friday, I saw that I had worked 90 hours in two weeks. Adding five hours on the road each week added up to one hundred job-related hours over those ten days of work.
Last week was particularly hectic, with 150 additional people in the building, some of whom had flown in from all over the world. That meant more greetings, food deliveries, details to chase, and assisting people with a variety of things.
When I got in my car Friday night for the crazy-traffic commute, all I could think of was pulling into my driveway and being home. Turning my brain off. Putting on my comfy clothes. Lounging around and blissfully doing a whole lot of nothing. A great feeling.
And to make getting home even better, when I pulled into the driveway, a tall, good-looking fella immediately came out to the car to dispense a welcome home hug.
You thought it was Steve, didn’t you?
Nope. It was another good-looking guy.
Noah had spent Friday with Steve working on the deck, and he was spending the night with us. He is always such a great house guest, putting his dishes in the sink, offering to help, making his bed, etc. On Saturday morning, Steve asked him to pray over breakfast, and in the middle of his prayer, he said something like, “Thank you that today is going to be a great day and tomorrow is going to be even better.”
Those words just stuck with me all day. What a great way to look at life.
Here are a few shots from their day.
The Smith & Smith Carpentry Company.
I didn’t quite catch the door to the right in the photo, but it’s the same one we carried Nathan through 36 years ago. It’s crazy that his son is working on the same house that his dad was brought into as an infant. In another decade or so, Noah could be bringing his own child through that door.
Tinker and Belle really enjoy Noah; I think they get bored with the old folks and find Noah to be refreshing.
Saturday, Steve got out there again, trying to finish the second deck door so that we can let the dogs out without a leash. (You can see the first gate pulled back) Also, you’ll see that on the deck enclosure, some of the spindles are dark and some are lighter. Steve and Noah added the new (unpainted) spindles so that the dogs couldn’t get through the wider spaces. Later on, they will paint everything the same color.
The deck is about 35 years old, and Steve is trying to refurbish it and shore it up so we can get another five or ten years out of it.
and learned a lot of carpentry things.
For instance, I did not know there was something called a carpenter’s pencil; it is square, rather than round. Steve said that if you use a regular pencil to mark wood, it will break very quickly. To sharpen the square pencil, Steve uses a utility knife. Who knew there were square pencils? Not me, that’s who!
He also explained to me the various vagaries of a speed square, a nifty and brilliant invention. It is used for marking, measuring, and cutting lumber, including marking straight and angled lines, finding and marking 90 and 45 degree angles, along with a lot of other things. Another thing I knew nothing about until I watched Steve work.
I’m thankful to have a husband (and grandson) who are gifted at all the things.
I’ve been dealing with pain in my left foot, which I’ve been assuming is plantar fasciitis. My PT therapists have been working on it without a lot of success.
I finally decided to make an appointment with my family doctor to get her opinion. She pressed, poked, and turned my foot this way and that. And then she did that test where doctors say, “Push against my hand with your toes; don’t let me stop you.”
Rather surprisingly, I had very little strength with my left foot when pushing against her hand, although my right foot was perfectly strong.
She said, “Hmmm. That’s not normal. I’m going to set you up with Carolina Neurosurgery and get their input. There’s obviously something going on.”
I thought, “Oh, happy day. Another medical situation.”
Unfortunately, there is no available appointment until the middle of December; I’ll just keep up with my PT and home exercises and hope for the best.
sitting in my favorite living room chair and enjoying the sight of the sun and the leaves outside the door.
As I sat in that chair, I thought about Noah’s prayer that “Today will be a great day and tomorrow even better.”
Maybe you’re not having an easy time of it right now. Whatever you’re going through, my hope and prayer for you is that you will experience a small encouragement, a lightening of your load, and an increased awareness that you are being held by strong, heavenly hands. For you and for me–may our tomorrows be better.
What about you?
Have you ever heard of (or used) a carpenter’s pencil or a speed square?
Do you, your kids, or pets have a hard time adjusting to returning to standard time?
Have you ever had plantar fasciitis? Or a weak foot? What was the outcome?
Do you have a memory of working with a parent, grandparent, or mentor on a project? What was it?
Hope your foot is feeling better. It’s no fun. I had to have shots in my feet multiple times but wearing my tennis shoes (I went to a shoe store that fits you for the best tennis shoes for your feet. This Really helped!!) most all of the time and the exercises helped! So no shots now for several years.
Great to see such skills being passed on! Memories to treasure.
I have a hard time adjusting to the time change. Hopefully the sleepless nights will get better soon!
Eswim,
Shots in one’s feet does not sound like a happy experience. Glad those days seem to be behind you.
The fall time change is easier than the spring change, but it’s still an adjustment!
I didn’t really know what a carpenter’s pencil was, but now that you’ve mentioned it, I kind of remember one on my Grandaddy’s basement workbench. I had not heard of a speed square, but I do know angles are a pain to cut just right.
No plantar faciitis, although I have sometimes had sort of a cramp in the instep of my foot lately. This getting older is certainly not for sissies.
Like you, I really like Noah’s prayer. I hope you have a wonderful rest of your week.
Sue Ellen,
Well, I’m glad to be the one who got to introduce you to a carpenter’s pencil! It was certainly a new item for me.
Yes, the getting older thing does come with a few challenges. We’re up for them, though!
Once upon a time when I was with my children who were playing in the woods near some older building we found a square pencil buried deep down under the leaves. We thought surely it was a piece of history! This must be how pencils were before they were round! How old do you think it is? How long do you think it has been here? Who was the last person who used it? So much imagining and pondering!
…turns out it was the land owner’s son…about a month before that who was the last to use it…before he lost it while building a hunting seat in a nearby tree.
Still makes me chuckle thinking about it! Ow we thought we had found this deeply interesting piece of history. Haha. That was the day I learned about square carpenter pencils.
Elizabeth,
Love this story! What a perfectly logical thing to think when finding a square pencil–it was a precursor to round pencils and you found a treasure. Too funny! (And dear.)
At least it provided a little bit of excitement for you and your children and you got to use your imaginations to explain the fascinating discovery.
What a precious prayer – he is growing up so quickly. May his life continue to reflect his faith in the Lord. Both of my uncles were carpenters and used those pencils – as a child, I thought they were a funny thing and didn’t understand why they were square. Thanks Steve for the info. I at one time had plantar fasciitis. The doctor told me to stretch my leg and my foot as if I had run or walked a lot and needed to stretch my legs. I did that for several days and the pain went away. After more than 22 years, we finally had our deck done this summer. It was made with wood and when it would rain, the sun would not get to the wet areas and the wood was rotting and we also had moss growing. Glad to have it done. Steve is doing a great job.
Sharyn,
I’m sure you are loving your new deck, especially after 22 years of seeing it get more and more weathered.
I’m glad your plantar fascitis went away fairly quickly; I’ve heard some people say they’ve had it for two years or more.
Yes, Noah’s prayer was definitely precious. I love to hear what comes out of a child’s mouth when they pray.
Yes, I had horrible plantar fasciitis for several years in both feet (which the podiatrist said was unusual; it’s more often just one foot). Anyway, they gave me all kinds of contraptions and exercises to try. None of them helped much, but then about a year later the fasciitis mysteriously disappeared.
It’s a very painful and annoying condition and I hope you find something helpful. It does tend to resolve by itself, I was told, and that held true for me, but I know it’s a big pain in the meantime.
My grandma and I used to quilt together. Gosh how I miss that.
Ellen,
That is strange! I’ve never heard it be in both feet. And then for it all to mysteriously disappear after a year! You are a medical mystery.
Steve has a couple of quilts made my his grandmothers; such treasures when you thin of the time and love that went into them. You were blessed to get to do that with your grandma–stitching memories.
Such a lovely place to sit and write and view the leaves.
I have heard of a carpenters pencil as my dad used them. I was always fascinated with them as a child. I had not heard of a speed square though.
I never have had any trouble adjusting to the time change, but some of my students did.
I have not had plantar fasciitis, but heard it is painful. I am still struggling with my broken toe after 6 weeks. No fun not being able to walk well.
I used to watch my dad work in the garage, but didn’t really do any projects with him. It is so great that Steve can work with his grandson and teach him the way to work.
Patti,
I think the time change is the hardest for kids since they don’t understand the context as well; they are just puzzled as to why it’s getting dark so early!
I’m sorry you’ve had to deal with a broken toe. I know that once it gets healed up, you will appreciate walking easily more than you ever have. I guess we take our feet for granted until something goes wrong with them.
It absolutely delights me to see Noah working with his grandpa. I have such fond memories of helping my grandpa–laying pavers, little woodworking projects, and the simple things like running errands. I now do know how to mark a 45 degree angle with a square pencil 😉 In my adulthood, I have started doing my own woodworking, building simple yet functional things like a little breakfast nook for the kitchen. I think of my grandpa and uncles each time. I have also delighted in teaching my nieces and friends how to use power tools and build because I think so often girls and women are not empowered to feel confident trying their hand at carpentry and general handiness.
I hope your foot heals quickly! I had a very weak ankle after a minor injury and was so frustrated with how long it took to heal. I didn’t have a car at the time and was used to jogging to the grocery store and then walking home with my groceries. In time, it healed, and PT was immensely helpful.
Robin,
It’s so true what you said about girls and women not being empowered to feel confident with using tools. I think women should learn to use tools and men should learn how to cook; those are great skills for everyone! Of course, now that I’ve said that, I probably need to learn. I did use a drill last Saturday and helped Steve with putting in two screws so that was somethng. 🙂
I think that building a breafast nook for the kitchen sounds very unsimple! You can be proud of yourself for accomplishing that and I love that it reminds you of your grandpa and uncles. I’m hoping Noah will remember Steve in the same way when he’s doing woodworking as an adult.
Becky, I love that you used a drill! I hope it was a bit of a Rosie the Riveter moment for you 🙂
Robin,
I felt quite impressive while I was doing it; Rosie would have been proud!
Oh Becky, plantar fasciitis is no fun. I’ve had it. I had a ‘topaz’ procedure done. In and out of the hospital same day…a few days of rest and then I wore a boot for a few weeks. That was 15 years ago and I’ve not had an issue since. Praying your find a resolution!!🙏🏻🥹🫶🏻
Kim,
I had to look up the topaz procedure; I’d never heard of it. Good to know there’s a solution like that if everything else fails. So glad it worked for you!
I have seen those 2 carpenter tools many times around here-for many years- simple but so handy. It amazes me what the guys can do -I would never know the least tiny thing about building or be able to manage it at all. I’m lucky if a bird house I make gets through one summer of nesting life before the nails are coming out and roof askew!
Thank you God for the many jobs men do to make our lives much better. Ruth
Ruth,
Yes, I am also amazed by anyone who can look at wood and a few tools and create something with it all. You did cook to make a birdhouse; I’m proud of you! Even if only lasted one season, it mst have been a good feeling to provide a habitat for a bird.