It was late yesterday when I went out for a walk, and although it was tempting to strike out for Golden Grain Farm to see what Scott's accomplished over there in the past few days, the approach of darkness stopped me. It's not a good idea to be out on the road with two dogs running free when visibility is low.

Only Casper (a.k.a. Big Girl) was with me when I started out, but we hadn't gotten far before the blue heeler, Sarah, came hurtling toward me with what I would call a big doggie smile. I quickly turned away from her so that when she ran into my legs at top speed, they'd bend without snapping.

Scott tells me he saw her nearly run over by the dual tires of a tractor yesterday. It will be a sad day around here when anything happens to that dog. But she is so fast that she takes chances and yesterday she got bogged down in some snow and that was almost the end of her. Scott's dad, Ivan, only just got the tractor stopped in time. Whew. You would hear me wailing all the way to Australia.

This morning we drove over to the new place so I could admire Scott's hard work. And I did. This archway used to be a narrow rectangular opening into the hallway. To its right was a closet; he took that out to make a spot for Grandma Johnson's china cabinet.

He hopes to reach the point of being able to paint next weekend. That took me by surprise, as I didn't expect it for weeks yet. Of course, a lot of things (75 cows calving, mostly) could come up between now and then and delay the process, so we are reluctant to put my aunt Rose, the painter, on notice. We can't expect her to drop everything and come running when we are ready, so he may just paint it himself. I have to call her and see what's what.

The kitchen cupboards over there aren't looking as bad as they first did. That's due to the room being opened up by removing walls, and all the curtains taken down, so there's more light. But they'll still have to be cleaned up considerably and he's going to take off an L-shaped part that juts out into the room. One day we'll likely replace them, but for now we'll make do.

It's time to decide on paint colours, he tells me. That's easy: I like my walls light and minty green, almost white. Fortunately Scott and I don't disagree on that.

He tells me what he would like to do for new light fixtures in the kitchen/dining area, and for the living room he may do a "knock-down" ceiling and coving. I say "As you wish, He-man." He does a lot of that kind of work and sees dozens of homes, so I trust his judgment. Still, he makes sure—which I appreciate. I guess I wouldn't like not to be consulted, though I most always concur. (He'd say that's not true.)

And now, off to the city to spend the evening with Cathy and pick up the boys in North Battleford tomorrow. There is talk of a snowstorm in Saskatoon so I'll check the weather and road reports before heading out.