Follow the Instruction's Instructions

Once the foundation was separated from the dining room table, I placed the recently stained floor on top to ensure everything was still square.  That's when I noticed that I had a significant issue.  There was a huge gap where there was no floor at all.  What had I done?  It's entirely possible that I had used incorrect pieces in building the foundation.  I certainly chose the pieces that looked most like the diagram and even measured one or two of them (but not all, I mean really, if 2 of the four are correct, we're golden.)  You can tell by the picture that we've gone way past wabi-sabi on this one.


Then in a moment of clarity, I recalled the lengthy set of warnings/before you begin section of the

instruction manual.  There it was, "Plan ahead so you know where you are going.  Read ahead so you know how to get there."  Flipping ahead, I was relieved to see that the porch has a separate floor.  I guess that makes sense.  How many of us have hardwood porches? Unfortunately, in re-reading the warnings, I saw many things I hadn't done:

• Large uncluttered workspace?  Non-existent
• Label all the parts before beginning?  If I took all these things out of the boxes, my already small cluttered workspace would only be more so
• Check off the parts to ensure that you have everything.  Does fingers-crossed work?
• Don't be stingy with the glue.  FINALLY, that's one I've mastered.