When we moved into our house almost 15 years ago the carpet in the lounge was almost threadbare. A decade and a half of further wear did it no favours.
For several years now we’ve been meaning to get new carpet, but there were some hindrances. My cat Minhla grew old and incontinent. It didn’t seem wise to put new carpet down.
Minhla passed, and before long an adopted cat and then 2 new kittens came to live with us. Still not the right time …
The kittens grew up, but then renovations came to pass. Now we really wanted to get the room finished properly, but for one thing renovations cost a lot and for another our dog Harriet was growing old, and incontinent.
By now the carpet was truly in a sad state, and half the floor was bare.
Then Harriet passed, but new puppies came into our lives …
Now, finally, the moment has come. We have new carpet, laid this week!
Carpet’s the kind of thing you only get once or twice in your life, so there were things we hadn’t thought of in these busy weeks.
First was the fact, obvious in retrospect, that we needed to clear out all the furniture. We discovered just how much ‘stuff’ we have that lives on the floor — boxes and gear in cupboards, as well as the usual crop of chairs and bookcases and so on.
The other biggie, was that this new carpet and luxurious underlay are thicker than the old, thin carpet. Most of our doors have now been removed and are awaiting being planed off so they can clear the floor.
The thing is, we rather like not having doors. And we definitely like the lack of clutter: most of our stuff is still in the shed. I’ve realised that in spite of my ongoing decluttering from the last few years I still have way more stuff than I either want or need.
And as for the guy who laid the carpet: he did the job on his own in one day — all 4 rooms plus a hallway, and shifting some of the furniture around. I’ve never in my life seen anyone get to work so immediately and then work so hard and fast. He had 28 years of experience and did a fantastic job.
This new carpet was oh so slow to arrive, but it was definitely worth the wait.
