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Channeling Aunt Maude? Yikes

"Look, Clark, so here’s what I’ot here, haven’t even cleared off a bed yet I slept on the floor last night, can you i his ar hiine I mean, not about the bed of course but--" he sta a deep red I may have let ht?

"So how about you letspace, as it were, and then we can talk soht back to his car A Taurus, of course Safe Dependable

"Well, that’s just fine, Vivian," he answered

"It’s Viv," I said with a sweet smile "And if I decide to rip off my front porch, I’ll make sure to call you first, huh?"

"I’m not too comfortable with that phrase Restoration work has to be slow and methodical Patient"

I leaned one hand on the car behind hiuy blush

"I don’t know Sometimes fast and hard and furious has its place--knohat I h to be fair, they wereHot into his car, and drove away It was a pamphlet from the Mendocino Historical Society On the back, his name was listed

Clark Barrow Historian Archivist Librarian

He forgot to list Elbow Patch Rocker

I turned back to the house with a chuckle And al the porch railing, which wiggled generously, I muttered, "Can’t make any repairs? We’ll just see about that"

I workedonly for leftover pizza and beer while standing in the kitchen, picking at contact paper on the pantry shelves Was this historical contact paper? Was I allowed to pick this off? Or does the future of this town rest on the 1970s snail-and-grasshopperlunch I ventured back to the basehtbulbs I’d found under the sink Now fully lit, it wasn’t nearly as scary as before I investigated the cold rooetables and preserves were still stacked neatly along the shelves, all dated fro back into the laundry roonored the box of heads as I put the sheets into the dryer I brought the camp blankets upstairs and pinned the in fro the ends Then I trooped back upstairs, deter for now I scrubbed the floor, carrying bucket after bucket of dingy water out back to dump I pulled down the old curtains, thick with dust, and conte about the frickin’ historical significance of every last ite a little, I folded the to have to get throay But apparently an archivist librarian had to be here for that

I tackled the hall bathroorace of God, I got it spick-and-span I’d found an old box of baking soda in the linen closet and with a bucket of ater and a brush, I scrubbed the little octagonal floor tiles until they gleamed The iron tub was still stained a bit despite all the bleach I’d used, but the old chrome faucets shone so I could practically seein, I was tired and stinky, but I had a sparkling clean bedroom and bath Too tired to even think about food, I stood under the shower and washed quickly, sha my hair as fast as I could in case the hot water ran out Once the particulars were taken care of, I luxuriated under the war my hands down my skin, I could feel every muscle that ached from the hard work