Jervis McEntee Diaries

Friday October 30, 1885

Jervis McEntee Diary Entry, October 30, 1885, from the Jervis McEntee papers, 1850-1905, in the Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution

Friday, Oct 30, 1885 It was wild and rainy this morning with wind N. E. I drove up to the station directly after breakfast after my trunk which the baggage man had failed to deliver, then I went down town to do some errands. I spent the forenoon putting in some glass and went up on the roof to sweep the leaves out of the gutters after unpacking my trunk and putting my things away. There I discovered some bad spots in the roof which needed immediate attention. After dinner I drove down town and got a bunch of shingles and spent most of the remainder of the day on the roof mending it. But it seems in a very bad condition and I wish I could reshingle it and repair the chimnies which need it very much. I think Sade and I were both pretty well discouraged today. There seems so much to be done and there is so little to do it with that we both lose heart. The only permanent relief is to sell at some price. I wish we could remain here all our lives but it seems unwise to hope for it. I am sorry now I had not got an offer from Coykendall. It would be wise to sell for half its value. How can I paint under these anxieties. My work seems very far away and I no longer see pictures in the fading landscape. It would take so little money to allow us to keep our home and yet among us all we do not seem to have the wit to make a sufficient income. Mabel Reed called here today.

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