This and That

After two years on the island fighting mosquitos, we decided to try something new.  We have become very adept at applying "Off" bug spray at 5:30 every evening.  Now we have a second tier of defense.  We purchased citronella lamps that produce whiffs of  black smoke to haze the bugs.  We are somewhat immune to the bites as our bodies have gotten used to the bugs...it's an island thing that happens to everyone that lives here for a while. 

We found a welder to reinforce our double wide chase lounges the metal frames for which had degraded from the salt air.  The only catch: he only speaks Spanish. We enlisted the help of our neighbor who teaches English and Spanish at the Dutch school. Rick had an engineered drawing which he explained in English, while the neighbor translated to Spanish.  The welder responded in Spanish and she translated to English.  After several rounds everyone shook their head yes, agreed on a price, and shook hands. The welder showed up the next day with all his equipment and spent two days building a steel frame for the chairs. He modified the engineered drawings to make the chairs stronger and better build. He was an amazing talent!

I now have paint clothes.  I had the bright idea that I could paint some of the smaller items around our house. My house painter got me primer and paint and gave me detailed instructions about sanding, primer, clean up and sent me on my way.  Before you knew it, I had paint everywhere. The door has carved designs which make it impossible to get paint to cover everything.  I worked on it for two days. It's done.  I will not be doing any further painting. I called the painter back to get an estimate on doing the door panels by the front door and a bench.  They will be here next week to save me from what I thought would be a fun experience. I will be spending my time taking mineral spirits baths to get the paint off of me.