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| Massive beams in here. |
By Maryanna Gabriel
For some reason, it is absorbing watching two women clear rubble from a burned-out chateau in France. Seemingly hopeless, but their hard work and determination are utterly commendable. I am as excited as they are when a tree growing out of the floor of the Grande Salon is felled.
It was then I heard my wall pop. I discounted the sound and continued watching my show, heard it again, then concluded the wall was contracting from heat loss. Nothing compared to what the two chatelaines were experiencing.
A few minutes later, I saw it. The wall moving, that is. That had my complete attention.
The concrete tile roof that was recently lifted off weighed tons. Several. I tried to think... with the massive beams in here, if wood is compressed and a load is removed, of course. It makes sense that the wood is moving. The surrounding drywall is the concern.
Given the roofer's intermittent presence, I forfeited trips to town. It has been two months since a major shop. Not a problem. The British government and parts of Europe recently recommended at least three days worth of food in case of emergency - a month is better. Am in awe of people who shop for their needs daily. Living on an island, it is a different mentality, and I am loaded up on basics (enough black beans for a lifetime. In fact, I should put a codacil in my will. Dear Grandson. I bequeath thee ten pounds. I digress...). Except for pototoes. So I went to the local store and purchased a hearty fellow, thinking it would tide me over. A dollar? What? You gotta be kidding me. Not even a large one!
This launched me into a potato tizzy. Should I go to town? How important are potatoes anyway? Given the onslaught of storms, tail winds of typhoons from the Pacific, every day is a new adventure. The major issue is wind because with it, the power goes out, and ferries are canceled. So yesterday, I gauged the contradictory weather reports, which delight in hammering on the catastrophic, and made a run for it.
Ferries? All good. Potatoes? Got thirty pounds for less than five dollars. Hah.