kiwords

We’re in the middle of having our roof replaced. It’ll be done tomorrow, and I can’t tell you how relieved I’ll be. Not just because I won’t be living with the constant thumping and thwacking of the roof gnomes anymore. Or because the cicada-like whine of the air compressor won’t be startling me unexpectedly. I’ll be glad when the roof is done because we can finally stop talking about it.
It started a few months ago. Dad had determined that the roof needed replacing, and he mentioned it to the rest of us. We nodded and agreed, yes. If the roof needs replacing, by all means. Have at it. Call the people, have it done.
Except then he wanted to talk about the color of the shingles. The new roof should be a lighter color, he thought. That would make it collect less heat in the attic. Mom and I watched him, politely waiting for him to stop talking about shingles, for heaven’s sake. He went on for a while, outlining his plan for the color scheme of the roof. The roof, you understand. He was talking about shades of gray, and shingle materials. He was expecting input. We shrugged, and generally allowed as how we trusted his judgement in the matter.
Well, it didn’t end there. For months Dad went around, noticing roofs. Preferring this one to that one. Pointing them out as we drove places. One day he called me excitedly to the back yard. The neighbors behind us were replacing their roof, a process he had been watching with great interest, as you can imagine. He pointed excitedly to their new shingles and exclaimed, “Look at that color! Isn’t that great? I think I want just that look, the subtle mix of colors…but a lighter shade. What do you think?” I squinted at the roof, searching for the right answer. “Yeah, Dad. It’s great. You know what I like best about that roof? Umm...the way it’s…right there…at the TOP of the house. Yeah. We should definitely do that.” He looked at me, puzzled, and then went to find Mom to show her.
A few days later he asked me if we should go for the white flashing or the galvanized. I guessed galvanized, thinking, what the heck is flashing? Isn’t that some kind of crime? Galvanized must have been the right answer, because he nodded sagely and said that was what he was leaning towards.
After all the discussion, the project finally began. Men arrived and tore off the old roof, replacing it with tar paper, and then left for the weekend. This didn’t seem like a good idea to me, but I was assured it would be ok. It was, and the men came back today and started nailing the new shingles in place.
I gotta tell you, it looks great. The colors are perfect with our new paint (Dad recently spent a million Saturdays painting the house). I never really noticed a roof before, but I think ours is the prettiest. Way to go, Dad.