Journal: August 16. New beam on porch.

Happy house with new beam raising roof

Delivered Jackie to bus at 6:55.  Revieweing yesterdays purchases, discovered that meat thermometer was in fact a grill thermometer--to measure the temperature of the grating on the grill. I do not need to measure that.  Back to Homegoods.  Wire shelf rack--not terrible--but also not quite right.  Wrong place to keep cosmetics, toothpaste, etc.  Better to build shelf next to sink.  Asked George his advice--and wonder of wonders he discovered that mirror over the sink was in fact door to a medicine cabinet--fully stocked with melting cough drops and other detritus.  Easily cleaned.  Bathroom shelf problem mostly resolved.

Two big envelopes in PO Box--one from cousin Anita (the oldest of all the cousins, as she proudly describes herself) with six black and white photos of my first birthday party--a great gathering of glaubermans here in Newton--and the corrected deed from Arnie which had to be notarized.

Had it notarized at Hampton Town Hall--easy as can be--returned to post office to mail it back (spoke to laura -- she'd signed it last week--neither of us was quite sure what was being corrected--but we just plough ahead) and then to Homegoods for returns and purchase of two more rag rugs.

While I am shopping and being notarized, George and John making huge progress on porch. New beam in. Old beam out. The roof is no longer sagging. It feels like the house is organizing itself--standing straighter, pulling back its shoulders.  Hard to recall that sagging roof, the drooping slabs of aluminum.  "It didn't do it by itself," says John.  Indeed it didn't.