The Lobby

Last night John and I built a scaffolding in the front room (which Anne-Marthe calls, appropriately, the lobby). When I say we built it I mean John did, and I just held boards when he asked me to. Today a nice man came to sand and paint the walls, which is very exciting since planning and shopping feels like progress and all but at some point you need visible change.

This room, it is a puzzlement. It is a grand and impressive entrance into the house, but we have no idea what to do with it. There is a very high ceiling which makes keeping it cool fairly impossible, probably why no one ever hangs out in there. We already have a sitting room/library for days when the weather isn't conducive to sitting on the porch, the most popular place in the house. So last night at dinner Felix, Anne-Marthe, John and I were thinking up what we might do with the lobby. Some ideas: Ballroom, billiards room (John says over his dead body), yoga studio. We are completely open to suggestions, if you have them.

While we were putting the scaffolding together the front door was open. A hummingbird flew in and spent a good hour slamming itself against the window at the top. Since we couldn't reach it with anything we just had to listen to the bap-bap-bap and feel bad. Eventually, though, I managed to catch it in my bare hand. Which was amazing, holding a delicate little hummingbird. If you put about 20 small feathers in your hand and close your eyes, it is about like that. Then John held it and we took this picture.