What Painting Has Taught Me

I'm on vacation this week, and trying to fix up my house so that I can eventually sell it and move back to my beloved Minnesota.  My downstairs bedroom is badly in need of a facelift, so I ordered new curtains, new bedding, and decided to paint the walls a lovely light blue (it's a dingy green now).  

What I know about my myself is that I like to skip right to the end of a project.  I want it done, like now!  So my character flaw is that I like to take shortcuts to get what I want as fast as possible.  The last time I painted this room I painted over some stains on the wall, and they bled right through, making the bedroom walls look dirty and dingy.  So this time I bought a good primer designed to cover stains as a first step.  I had all my tools, knew what to do, and opened the primer to find a sticky, muddy, mess at the bottom.  Thinking I'd forgotten to have the paint store shake the primer, I went back to the store, where they gladly shook it for me.  Got home and found the same sticky mess.  I was SO tempted to skip the primer and go straight to the paint, but instead, I got back in my car and drove it back to the store.  The very helpful young man behind the counter offered to shake it again.  I suggested that he do so, but this time open the can afterwards and stir with a paint stick.  Yep - same problem.  So I was offered a replacement, but every can he opened was defective, so I switched to a new product, had him try it out, and went home.  By that point I had only accomplished taping, removing curtains and pictures, but oh well, I have a week.

This morning I arose with every intention of priming, then painting that bedroom.  Until my temporary tooth crown came off (again) and I had to spend the morning at the dentist's office.  So this afternoon I got 3/4 of the room primed and painted, and WILL finish tomorrow, at which point I can put up the new curtains and put the new bed linens on the bed. 

What does this have to do with weight loss?  Well, I was very frustrated the last two days.  I wanted to get to the end quickly, so that I would have a beautiful result to look at.  I wanted to revel in my success.  When life threw me some curve balls, I had to deal with them and move on.  And I found that I couldn't skip steps - I needed to do it right, even if it meant that it would take longer than I initially thought it would.  

There are lots of people willing to help, but sometimes the help they give isn't what you need, even if you didn't know it at the time.  Once you do figure out what you need, you have to ask for it.  And you still have to work damn hard to get to the end.  

Sometimes the first "fix" isn't the right one (I had a lap band 7 years ago, and revised to VSG this year).

In the end, if you follow the rules, have the right tools, don't skip steps, and deal with the obstacles life throws at you, you will have something to be proud of.  Something new and shiny and fabulous.  And if you take care of it, it'll be just as gorgeous for a long time to come!

Awesome. I have that same mindset (with painting and this WL journey). This really spoke to me - especially since I am going to paint my son's dark gray room this weekend.

Oh boy - remember the primer on those dark gray walls!

Very nice story. I was just laying here saying to myself that I have been in worse conditions and to suck it up. Meaning that I had all that lapband misery and this recovery pain ain't nothing compared to it. I'm anxious to see what the sleeve will HELP me accomplish. Just have to get over the few bumps in the road and learn some newer lifestyle changes such as possible lactose intolerance.

You CAN do it!  Life ain't easy, but in the end, we all get what we came for.  Get to work - that room isn't painting itself!

Great story! I am the same way when it comes to projects. I have been learning to be more patient thanks to this surgery. I am so excited for the end result, and have to keep reminding myself that it will take time. I have a long way to go, but will have the rest of my life after I get there to enjoy my new healthier self.

I love this great state, too.  Awesome that you're taking steps to get back to the land of 10,000 lakes.