It rains a lot in Ireland and one time when I was there, I saw a painter painting a storefront in the pouring rain. It wasn’t raining too heavily and the part he was painting was probably not in threat of getting too soggy, but the thought of painting in the rain brought a smile to my face. Dancing in the rain, maybe, but painting?
Being of Irish descent and prone to exaggeration, I have now extrapolated this little scene into a general theory which I often mention to people. When the subject of Ireland comes up, I always work into the conversation the “fact” that it rains so much in Ireland the painters have to paint in the rain. All because I saw one guy do it. So, forgive me Irish people, for “painting” you with an unflattering brush, if that’s what I did.
I especially beg forgiveness in light of the fact that on Friday, I painted my shed in the rain. It wasn’t raining when I started the job but halfway through, it started to come down. I cleaned up my brushes, roller, etc., but within an hour, the rain stopped. The sun even peeked out from the clouds. So, I took out all my equipment again, ventured out to the shed, felt the walls to see how dry or wet they were, and started up painting again. After a few minutes, the rain started again, but I didn’t want to quit. I was determined to get this done. I painted over some wet surfaces so I hope the whole thing doesn’t peel right off by Wednesday.
It’s hard for me to describe the colour I used to paint the shed but the best I can do is tell you it was a light shade of karma.
Did you know that it rains so much in Canada, some fools have been known to paint in the rain? It’s true. I saw a guy do it once. He might not have been the smartest painter in the world but boy did he work fast.
©2013 Jim Hagarty