Late afternoon yesterday, I helped the maids sweep out rain water that flooded both the wet and dry kitchens during the freak downpour. The eaves couldn’t hold the rainfall, and the downspouts had been clogged by dried leaves from our ancient kaimito tree, so it was literally raining inside that portion of the house. Very cartoon-like.

Armed with our trusty walis tingting, we were sweeping continuously for about 20 minutes. I told mom that I would be climbing onto the roof to clear the eaves, while she called the reliable carpenter to control the problem. The house is as old as I am--34 years-- with hardly any renovation, so I assume it continued to stand by sheer will alone.

Speaking of houses, I had two photo shoots last week. Since Real Living magazine is about interior design, all of our subjects concern either furniture and fixtures, interiors of homes and condominium units, or home improvement. While I enjoyed looking through mom’s House and Garden magazines when I was a kid, the technical aspects of designing for interiors is alien to me. The design principles are similar to those of graphic design, but I have to reinterpret them for three-dimensional space, and the materials and textures are completely different and more myriad. It’s frustrating and exciting at the same time.

It’s funny, since my favorite part of any department store is the home improvement section. I like looking at the selections and do my own mix-and-match, but the language escapes me. I know why I like something but I can hardly articulate. Fortunately, my co-workers know their stuff, so maybe I’ll soon be able to confidently say something like, “Oh, I like the lines of this lampshade. It’ll go well with a 50s-inspired foyer.”

But for now, I’ll settle for, “Nice lamp.”

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