My home office needed repainting. OK, it didn’t need repainting so much as it needed a good, long sandblasting. But my thinking was that painting it would be cheaper and faster than cleaning it. That turned out to be wrong on both counts. It seems you just can’t paint over spaghetti on a wall, and you’re supposed to remove all pictures and light-switch plates – not just paint around or over them.

And it turns out, that if you get paint-upholstered furniture, it’s what the professionals call “ruined.” Apparently you’re supposed to use a thing called a “drop cloth.” Who knew?

“Everybody,” Sue explained.

That’s why I don’t let her in my office very often, entirely too much negativity. I’d rather do this stuff myself and learn from my own mistakes.

“What color are you going to paint it?” she asked.

“I haven’t decided yet.”

“Remember, dark colors will make the room look smaller.”

And I always thought the stacks of unread newspapers and magazines were what made the place look smaller. The three out-of-date printers sitting beside my filing cabinet don’t help. What am I thinking? That the longer I keep them, the more in-date they will become?