invisible furniture

February 11, 2006

We survived the spaghetti supper, yesterday. Intimate dining for 25 or so, with teenagers hitting the kitchen like a locust swarm.

But before the dinner, we cleaned the house. Much vacuuming, scrubbing, washing, and dusting. What could not be straightened or tossed was hidden.

Until we got to the half couch in the dining room. This is the huge piece of furniture I was building, until I realized that it’s easier to buy a couch than to build one. We’ve been hiding it under a pile of coats and generally ignoring the thing. But as I cleaned up, and moved the coats back to the closet, there it was, still in the dining room. Taunting me.

The DH looked at the thing on Friday and said, “What are you planning on doing about this?”

I said, hopefully, “I was thinking, we could take it to the attic.”

He said, “See this look? The one that says, ‘don’t even think of saying that because it’s not going to happen?'”

I said, “Well, I was THINKING of taking it to the attic, but you notice I didn’t actually suggest we do that. Because I can see the look and it’s not going to happen.”

He said, “What are you going to put on it, so that people can sit on it?”

I said, “You can’t sit on it.”

He said, “Why not?”

I pulled back the foam and showed him the ass-sucking holes underneath.

He grabbed one of the boards that would fit over the holes, dropped it in place and sat down.

OK. So you can sit on the couch. Who knew? And we have this big pile of cushions left over from the couch we just got rid of, that fit neatly along the back, and with a quilt tucked in over the foam? It’s furniture again.

It’s actually kind of comfortable. In some ways, more comfortable than the couch I just bought. We now have additional seating in the diningroom. And it will look even better when I get around to covering the foam with something other than a quilt.

But there is one problem: The swim team, which has never been to our house before and knows nothing of the half/couch saga, walked into the room, dropped their letter jackets on the half/couch and walked into the kitchen.

It’s a powerful, homemade coat magnet. That’s why it’s taking so long to finish. I get near it, and have the overpowering urge to set stuff on it and walk away.

Nice to know that it’s not just me.

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