Struggling for direction

I have been asked by several people if I am enjoying retirement. I am, but with a caveat. I am still struggling to find the time to do all the computer related items I used to squeeze into a normal workday, checking account balances, making doctor calls, writing, paying the bills, etc. Somehow all the time spent in the desk chair at the computer seems unproductive when compared to the multitude of projects I have been able to work – some to completion. So, by the time I feel free to do all those electronic chores the day is usually far spent. 

Perhaps next week that will change somewhat. Next Thursday I will be starting to work at the creation Evidence Museum two days per week. I have not worked out all the details, but I feel certain everything will fall into place as I move forward into that role. It is one of those ready-fire-aim circumstances when we step out by faith and let God fill in all the details we did not know needed attention before we started.

Victoria is in one of those circumstances right now. We were rejoicing Tuesday that she was able to find an apartment, a studio apartment, that would accept her dogs. The management even waived the pet deposit to simplify her signing the month-to-month lease. It is not an inexpensive space. The rent is $1050/month for the very small space. It can be compared to having a kitchenette (stove, refrigerator, microwave and sink and cabinets) and a full bathroom tucked into her bedroom. Where she will go from here is not yet known, but she has a place of her own, such as it is.

I am told that she is spending one more night with Nana and Papa Shipe before she commits herself to the apartment. So far, this has been a tough week for her, but all in all, it has been a blessed week. So many at our church, as well as all of us in her immediate family, have been earnestly praying for her as she has met a few difficult challenges and seen her way through each of them. She is not settled yet, but she has a starting point, and she has some onsite help and council. 

I have spent my time this week focused on the container. The walls are painted and now I am working on leveling and repairing the floor so it too can be painted. Mama and I have gone back and forth on what to do with the floor, but sealing and painting it is probably the best option for now. That has proven an unexpected challenge. I ordered a quart of a certain oil-based paint many months ago and decided to apply it to the floor at the far end of the container. It looked beautiful, so Mama and I looked for more of that brand and color of paint. We searched high and low, but none was available. The next best thing was to match the color with a different brand of paint but no one in Decatur had anything comparable. Mama and I finally went to the Sherman Williams store and bought their brand that would match the color and use we needed. It was not cheap. In fact, it was kind of expensive, but it will work, and I am confident we will get what we need out of the purchase. I hope to have the repair to the floor done – some deep gouges in the wood – and be ready to paint the floor next Monday.

My goal is to have the shelving we purchased for the container assembled and placed before I go to Glen Rose Thursday. With that plan in mind, Mama has been aggressively organizing her craft supplies in the house to be ready to fill those shelves once they are in place. That has always been our plan, but it has been a long time in coming. Mama has been very patient with me.

Meanwhile, in-between working on the garden and completing the fence in the back yard, Norman has been sorting through his tools, which are currently filling our barn in preparation for a yard sale this weekend. Mama and I have donated to the cause. Selling scrap, hauling junk and selling his tools is the only income he has had this month. At this point he is very motivated to reassign ownership of all the stuff he has accumulated over the years. He has cleaned out one storage unit locally but has another unit completely full. 

Along with what is currently filling our barn, I have begun to wonder how he accumulated all he has. I realize the accumulation happened over time, but the money spent to obtain all this stuff must have been significant. Certainly, far more than he will recoup in a yard sale. Yet here we are praying wholeheartedly that he attracts a crowd willing to trade their cash for his abundance of stuff.

I think secretly Grandpa would like his barn back so we can buy some cows.