Blue Paint Tape

This week’s FaithWriters topic is “blue.” I’ve procrastinated (what’s new), but wrote up a first draft last night about this fictional woman named Imogene Wilson - such a sweet soul who lives in a blue bungalow in the Great Smoky Mountains, grows blue monkshood in her flower garden, hangs antique blue plates on the knotty pine interior of her home, knits blue afghan squares in her prayer closet (a literal place), and is known as “True Blue” by the volunteer organizations in her community. A bit contrived, but then again, WHAT A GAL. I actually sorta like her.

We’re back at the Buck Creek house this morning, and another entirely different idea for a story showed up. Blue paint tape is still stuck here and there, framing windows and both the front and back porches (pillars/ceiling/fascia boards/etc.) that still await fresh paint before the weather turns cold (better hurry, huh).

In fact, I will soon be out on the porch roofs (shudder, I HATE heights) to peel off blue tape from the window trim. (Does it come off clean in damp, cold weather, or do I need to take the goo-gone with me?)

What I DO know is that the peeled tape WILL, as usual, stick to itself in the process, and then will glom up in giant basketball-sized-balls that stick to my fingers until I’m totally disabled. This has happened many times in the past (just never while simultaneously perched on a rooftop) and will be especially true today since I’ll be hanging on for dear life with my free hand.

Maybe I should think about re-writing Imogene’s story; maybe she needs to be remodeling and doing tons of painting with blue tape, and she ends up wrapped like a true-blue mummy…and….blue paint tape TAAAAKES OVEEEER THE WOOOORLD…….

It’s evil, you know - that blue paint tape. Imogene said so. And believe me, she knows what she’s talking about. Yep. She does.