The critter’s got a good eye.

All that’s left is to remove the incredibly fine dust that has settled on all horizontal surfaces and move everything back in its place.

Everything? Maybe not.

It almost seems a shame to hang the pictures again—the rooms looks so nice with nothing on the walls. Who needs a mirror in the bedroom? Maybe we should get rid of most of these books …

Whoa! Okay, we keep the books (most of them). But this attractive emptiness reminds me of Laura’s dream house. As she describes it, there would be one room with absolutely nothing in it. You’d go in there to empty your head. What a luxury that would be. Some would say it sounds like solitary confinement—the “hole,” as they say. Well, what’s the purpose of the hole if not to focus the prisoner’s thoughts on what’s really important? We should all toss ourselves into the hole from time to time.

The view down the second-floor hallway from the bathroom:

The bedroom:

Laura’s office:

First-floor entrance foyer:

Dining room (view from kitchen):

Living room (radiator removed):

The basement—where we live for now:

Cozy, ain’t it?