Not As Young As We Used To Be

There was a time when I could whip a three-bedroom place into shape for company within a few hours. Its important to keep track of when those days end because it can have a severe scheduling impact. After being unsuccessful in our evening attempt to achieve "good enough for company" (which means I will need to ask for a half day off tomorrow on short notice) I tried to think how long it has been since my halcyon white cyclone days. Answer: twelve years. Granted, as little as two years ago preparing for the arrival of some cousins included painting two rooms and the porch, but we spaced that out over at least a week. It doesn't hold a candle to the time we received our truckload of household furniture on Thursday and had the house ready for company Saturday morning. Without taking Friday off. Oh, youth. Where have you gone?