It is truly amazing how difficult removing small spots of paint left behind on tiles after sloppy painting of a wall can be.

I was given an invaluable opportunity to discover this for myself today in the continuing saga of the Preparing of the House for the Summer.  This project is following a schedule laid down by somebody other than myself and is driven forward by Another.  I follow meekly, lazily and without apparent enthusiasm in the wake of the fury of cleanliness and order which has tornado-like swept through my erstwhile calm household.

Today, in honour of the visit of one of my colleagues, it was the turn of the Third Floor.

Bleach was to the fore as everything that could be covered with corrosive liquid was duly coated.  Sun beds had hidden corners searched for hardened accretions of dust which were duly blasted into liquid oblivion by a well-wielded mop.

Inexplicable stains which we inherited having proved themselves impervious to previous cleaning assaults held out well against the bleach-reinforced attack this time.  They might be a little fainter, but they are still there, and I for one am prepared to admit defeat and accept them as part of the design of the floor tiles.

To compensate for the lack of success in one area we have reinforced another by changing the cushions on the sun beds.  They look expensive and elegant mainly because those two adjectives sum up their essential qualities.  They have a little built in head cushion which adds that professional touch.

I confidently expect the weather to change at once to dull, overcast and essentially sunless days.  One really shouldn’t tempt fate.  And the sun beds are now bright red.  Though I am not quite sure about what that adds to the equation.

However the Third Floor is now Summerized and looking pretty good.  We have not yet lain on the beds, as we do not feel entitled to do so: they simply look too good in their pristine state to be sullied by an actual body.

Bit by bit the house is taking shape with minor change making major differences. 

Next in line to be “done” is the garden and I need to buy some week killer because of incursions of unwanted vegetation from neighbours’ gardens.  When I get the poison I shall dedicate my activities to Sir John and Slough and I shall try and enact the line “swarm over death”!

My multi-level cactus garden looks pretentious and unlikely while the addition of my bejewelled peacock adds just the right touch of the bizarre!

The pica-pica which accompanied the extended chat with my colleague was excellent and we eat everything which was on the plates in a casual almost absent minded way which may have had something to do with the easy consumption of wine which accompanied the conversation.

Even though today is Saturday and there would be no school tomorrow there was a different feel to the ease of talk that comes with knowing that school is more than two months away!

Roll on the holiday!