Feeling rather dejected this morning, I elected to pull up the downstairs carpet. I recommend this activity to anybody who is feeling down, as the carpet makes a pleasant ripping noise as it comes away from the floor, and there is a delightful sense of discovery and possibility as you reveal the floor that lies beneath. In addition, there is the amusement that always arises when cats become bewildered.
I hasten to add that I did not embark on this mission without a certain degree of forethought. It is safe to invite me into your home, as I do not view all carpet as a source of destructive entertainment. The fact is that much work has been down on my floors in recent months. Over the years, due to borer and the inattention of previous owners to proper guttering alignment, the condition of many of my floorboards had reached a parlous state of disrepair. This has all been repaired, and sometime in the near future people will be coming around to lay new flooring. Since it is never wise to lay vinyl on top of carpet, the carpet had to go.
Now, I say vinyl, and vinyl doesn’t sound very pleasant. It will sound even less tasteful when I say that I have selected vinyl tiles with photographs of wood on them. But these tiles are truly a wonder of the modern era, in that they look like wood. Yet they are vinyl. I trust I am getting across the appropriate sense of wonderment here.