This evening was a nice departure from my normal weeknight routine of plopping on the couch and watching the Cubs.

The Cubs played, yes, but somehow I pulled myself away from them- sort of- to do something productive.

Nearly a week ago, my employers were saying goodbye to a nice large wooden table that sat in the library area of our office. When it was made known that the table was gonna go, I was lucky enough to ask for it since it sits back in the office near where us IT people sit. I got the thumbs up to have the table, so it came home with me two Friday’s ago. It’s a broad handsome table, so I thought it would make a great game table. And I think it will.

Tonight, then, I pulled it out from where it was disassembled at one side of the garage and put it together, the table top on its legs, in the open side of the garage where I usually park the truck each night. I followed Tim’s guidance for reconditioning the top surface. I sanded it over three times- stripping any old varnish still on it off with a first pass with a medium paper, followed by a second pass with a finer paper to get rid of any jaggies, and a last pass with a refined grain to slick it all out.

The table, sanded and ready for a new coat.

I didn’t totally miss my Cubs playing Miami at Wrigley tonight, though.

I fired up the At Bat app on my phone and plugged the phone into some speakers and listened to the old beloved voice of radio announcer Pat Hughes calling the Cubs game with his sidekick Ron Coomer. It was like the old days, when I lived in Chicago, 10 blocks from Wrigley, without a TV and much else to do on summer nights when I was home. Pat had my full attention then, as he does still now, when the Cubs play and I somehow tear myself away from the tube.

Tonight, I worked with the garage door open and cool air filled the work space because of storm clouds charging into the city near sunset from the south. I worked, Pat and Ron chatted, the wind whirled, and the Cubs got behind early and fought hard to come back and almost did, but eventually lost. It’s okay. They took 2 of 3 from the Marlin’s this week and won that series, the second in a row for a team still trying to find their identity despite receiving World Series rings this season because of last year.

Once I cleaned off the the table top and wiped it off with tack cloth and a damp cloth and let it dry, I put a first layer of polyurethane sealer on it. The table will own the garage the next two evenings. I’ll sand layer one smooth tomorrow night and then put layer two on over that, and try and repeat it a last time on Friday evening. And then, according to Tim’s guidance, I’ll oil the whole thing to give the wood some life and protection.

Getting dressed again.

It was a nice change of pace tonight from my usual weeknight evenings at home. It was enjoyable being productive. I need to do that more often.