Painting for newlyweds a no-no?

Did you hear the one about how couples in their first year of marriage shouldn't paint together?

Heh heh heh.

Now they tell me.

Suffice to say Sherri and I got through it last Saturday -- and Sunday -- and I believe we'll still make it to our first anniversary next April.

"Let's wait and see, buster," she kidded.

I think.

Our plan to repaint the front bedroom --- it'll be my study --- got off to a great start when we argued about the drop cloth.

Sherri wanted plastic.

I always use old sheets.

We did both.

It got better.

I had picked out a nice Salem blue earlier in the week for the room, because it looked so cozy on the brochure.

When we got done painting one wall, I got a baaad feeling.

The color was not going to work.

Sherri sensed my unease.

"If you don't like the color, please say so now," she said.

Ten minutes later I was back at Lowe's for a gallon of ... hmmm.

I liked the merlot, brick dust and tropical nut.

"The last one? That's you," Sherri said when I called her.

So I got three pint samples, we tried them on a wall and decided on brick dust.

I think I made that trip three times before we got the job done --- Sunday afternoon.

We were running low on paint on Day 2, so Sherri said go get another quart.

I did. But it didn't look like it would be enough.

So I turned around and got another one.

Which we didn't need afterall.

Yours truly managed to turn what should have been a half-day's job into a two-day event.

Got a nice, wine-red room to show for it, though.

Anybody need a slightly used gallon of Salem blue paint and unopened quart of brick dust?

Cheap.