Brand New Human
Overdue update.
We’re wrapping in on week three in our temporary apartment. It’s nice being in a different neighborhood and having the chance to explore new places (Uma Casa, Bacco, Mr. Digby’s — all of those very yummy places). But I’m fairly homesick. The place we got is a pretty poor AirBnb, the kind that looks like it has all required amenities but is fundamentally pieced together from second-hand furniture and whatever crap the previous occupants left behind. I can guarantee no one has ever lived full time in this place or they would have noticed how bad the couch is. In all seriousness, this is the worst couch I’ve ever sat on.
First of all, it’s broken to bits — there are two massive holes in the underlying upholstery (which our cat is having a blast exploring), the cushions are slouchy (but not in a good-way-slouchy) and riddled with cigarette holes, provide absolutely no padding against the plywood and metal rods which somehow protrude from the base. The backing panel is shaky and cannot be leaned against. I simply can’t fathom that any human graced with reason and functioning nerve endings would ever sit on this in the shop and decide that this couch should prevail over any other. How many more sentences should I write about this couch being terrible? Enough for anyone reading this to understand how terrible of a sitting experience this couch delivers.
On the actual home front, the progress on our kitchen has stalled a bit. A good amount of work has gone into demolishing the old kitchen and getting a few cabinets installed, but the coordination of the various subcontractors has turned into a bit of a disaster. Some of the new cabinets are damaged or missing elements, and ordering replacements will take weeks. The countertop installer is currently the bottleneck for the whole project and they cannot commit to the fabrication until the end of next week, so we’re basically twiddling our thumbs in the meantime. Our preliminary inspection with the city cleared, which is good. We’re going back every now and then to pick up the mail and water the plants and longing to be back home.
Other than that, our weekends have gotten a little bit more chill. We’re through the handful of parenting classes that we had scheduled throughout March and have at least some idea of what lies ahead of us. I wish I could say we’re fully ready for the arrival of Brand New Human, but the precarious housing situation is throwing a wrench in the plans. There’s still a sliver of hope that the apartment will be ready in time for us to move back before the birth but any attempt at planning anything feels vain right now.
We had a baby shower in a picnic area in the park a couple of weeks ago. I came out of it with the same feeling as I did our wedding, a certain weirdness to see people from our various circles coming together at once and intersecting in unexpected ways, and also a feeling of not spending enough time catching up with anyone.
Molly’s begun her maternity leave and we’ve enjoyed some activities which are both more local and less strenuous, such as the pedal-boats on Stow Lake. We just came back from a very pleasant short walk in the Presidio, on Lover’s Lane and Ecology Trail. We did a maternity shoot yesterday, which led us to Clarion Alley and to Fort Point, both of which rank high on the list of staple San Franciscan locations. Hopefully Brand New Human will have the feeling of a relaxing last few weeks before chaos ensues.