Garage Door Progress — Janet Szabo

One garage door is up on the new shop:

It’s more brown and less gray than it appears in the picture. The front door is similar but bigger, and I think it has two rows of windows. The guy is coming back to install that one next week. This door exits onto the easement between our properties. The husband will be able to drive trucks and machinery straight through.

I stopped at Kalispell Copy yesterday morning and ordered the “Tom’s Shed” sign for over the front man door. The husband notes that I have a thing for metal signs. I’ve bought several over the years with which to decorate the old garage, and I really have to restrain myself when I go to Hobby Lobby. They have one that says, “Can’t Fix Stupid,” which is next up on the list, although that one may end up in my office. I just think that garages and metal signs go together.

The Architectural Review Committee needs to start thinking about siding colors.

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I had a lovely conversation yesterday with the owner of the organic market in the town just south of us. That store is carrying my canvas grocery bags. She said people are starting to shop for holiday gifts, so I am going to take some aprons and other small items down there next week. The store also has a “Monday Market” from 4-6 p.m. with vendors. I’m not quite ready for that this week, but I’m going to try to participate in that the following week.

And now I have to think about display racks and business cards and mobile payments and a thousand other little details. I have no desire to do the craft show circuit, but I do want to take advantage of some of these holiday opportunities. I’ve missed most of the big shows, which were in October and early November. I think that’s okay, though, as I need to start small and see how this plays out. (Also, I would need much more inventory for a multi-day show.)

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I called the BMW dealer in Spokane yesterday to check on the status of those recall parts. When I was there last month, they said the parts would be in some time in November. Now they aren’t scheduled to arrive until January. The service guy said the car is still safe to drive despite the alarming wording of the recall notice. (“Your car could catch on fire.”)

The door locks have been acting squirrely, too, so the husband did some research and it appears that there is a known issue with the actuator failing. I’m really rather shocked and dismayed at how much we have had to fix on what is supposed to be vehicle from a solid brand with a premium price tag. The husband says he can order the part and fix the locks, but I shudder to think how much more I would have had to spend on this car if he couldn’t do the work.

So I won’t have to tack on a visit to the BMW dealer when I go to Seattle for Thanksgiving, but I am going to try to fit in a visit to the Northwest Museum of Arts and Culture in Spokane either on the way there or the way back. At this time of year, I prefer not to do the drive to Seattle in one day. We only have about 6-7 hours of daylight, so I’d be driving in the dark for at least part of the trip. I have no desire to hit a deer or an elk.

This is the exhibit I want to see:

The description reads:

Selected pieces from the museum’s collection illustrate how textiles convey social status, personal identity, history, and much more. This exhibition showcases a rare 17th century quilt that may be one of the oldest surviving quilts in the United States. In addition, 19th and 20th century quilts, handwoven coverlets, and pieces from the American Indian collection will be on display.

It sounds fabulous. The museum is also offering a 90-minute seminar this afternoon on “Quilts: A Brief History and How to Care for Them,” but obviously, I’m going to miss that. Oh, well. I’ll be happy enough to see the exhibit before it closes.