Part II. Tony. "Handsome Hubby"
I saw this meme on instagram and it went something like, “My wife just started measuring a wall in our house and I don’t know what she’s up to but it’s probably going to be expensive.” Tony, is that you? (Tony is Jolene’s husband, or “Handsome Hubby,” as he appears in Jolene’s contact list).
Featured here, “Handsome Hubby” looking ever so regal.
As the garden unit resident, I’m privy to Jolene’s incessant “fussing” around the property to make it more beautiful. In the course of an afternoon the placement of furniture and planters will undergo a timelapse before my eyes. The chaise lounge will move from the far left corner to the far right corner. Cushions will appear on the sofa. A rug which started under the sofa, will end up under the chaise only later to see it back under the sofa. By evening the chaise will have found its way back to the far left corner where it started and all cushions removed.
According to Tony, “Jolene is passionately impulsive in life, word, and thought.” I can corroborate. Earlier in the pandemic when Shelter in Place had just started, I received a text from Jolene asking if it would be okay if she practiced roller skating upstairs because she wanted to participate in a TikTok recording. I had to clarify that she meant for her and not her 11 year old daughter, Ava. Then last month, I got one of these:
Jolene: “Would you kill me if I got this?”
Me: “No, but Tony might.”
What was it you ask? An inflatable hot tub from Amazon. I empathize with Tony as I too resigned, “But I won’t be surprised if it’s there when I get home.”
Jolene pictured above enjoying Beckett’s kiddie pool while catching up on this month’s DECOR magazine. (Likely origin of her Inflatable Hot Tub seedling).
“Handsome Hubby,” looking dubious over Jolene’s latest proposal or just the epitome of adoration? Maybe in this house, they’re the same thing.
You see what you need to know about Jolene is, she has big ideas and she’s always tinkering to make life more enjoyable. (Don’t even ask about how many iterations of hanging up market lights we went through--ahem five.) But Tony is here for it all, albeit sometimes with protest, “Jolene we already have (fill in the blank)!,” but mostly I think that’s just a husband formality. What he loves about Jolene is that “you never know what to expect.” Rollerblading for TikTok and an Inflatable Hot Tub? Yeah, I wasn’t expecting that.
Tony further advises, “Listen carefully to Jolene because what she says most often brings a huge smile, brightening your day, sometimes at the risk of peeing your pants.” This is excellent feedback because although Tony grew up in Southern California, he’s got an East Coast vocal range. In response to some of Jolene’s “big ideas,” I’ve had to nervously ask, “Is he yelling and are we in trouble?” Jolene chuckles taking it all in stride, “No, that’s just Tony.” This house has good bones.
You can count on Jolene to dream up big ideas baked with absurdly fun details. But don’t worry, they’re always grounded in her quest for perfection and function. My advice, if you’ve got a crazy idea- run it by Jolene. She’s not afraid to hash out the details with skeptics and has a way of making them come to life.
xo,
Sam, The Neighbor Downstairs
P.S. We’re still waiting on the hot tub.