a little more light

Ahhhhh.

We made it.
Happy Solstice to you!
~~~

In recent weeks, I have been in what seems like constant - if slow - motion. Each night as I've stumbled through the evening chores in the dark despite my best efforts to be finished before dark, I've thought:

"Tomorrow I really need to rest my bones for a few hours. I will just do the chores, and then relax in the recliner in the parlor for a couple of hours, and rest my back. Meditate.

Ahhhh.

Listen to an audiobook. Possibly do a bit of knitting.

It will be wonderful.

Yes, tomorrow after chores I will just fill the woodbox, stoke the fire, and rest in the recliner. All the aches and kinks can slowly unwind themselves at least a little bit. 

It will be so refreshing.

This is not my woodpile.
It is my friend's woodpile.
I have woodpile envy.

Before I get comfortable, I'll just have to talk with the carpenter about the exterior walls. But before speaking with the carpenter, I have to call the store about the missing handles for the sliding doors, and find someone who knows the whereabouts of the salvage place two towns over. Oh, and the sills! I must call around to see if any of the local sawmills are sawing hardwoods right now.

And pick up another load of insulation 

 and bring it up to the porch.

so the car will be empty and I can pick up a load of hay and use the Hayboggan (seen above) to give each bale a ride to the goat barn. Oh! And when the car is empty again, I must take a couple of hours to drive down to the valley and pick up the goats' minerals which finally came in and which I meant to pick up yesterday and the day before. And I haven't been to the valley for a couple of months, so while I'm there, I need to buy groceries and..."

And that's the way it's gone, every day.

Just one necessary thing after another

and then it's dark again.

Even at my now-slow pace, there have been many small but satisfying accomplishments and lots of very joyful moments. While I was installing the de-icer in the goats' big new water bucket yesterday and thinking about putting a windbreak across the front of a West-facing shelter before we get more snow, I realized something:

LeShodu loves to use this newest platform as a Command Post,
but soon it will just be a nice Snack Bar,
as demonstrated here by Lily and Campion.
Sorry, Shodu.

no matter what isn't done "before winter" this year, I am simply not going to give myself a hard time about it. Because I have been doing my best, pretty continuously, for months, and that's got to be good enough.

But that said, how happy I am to know: there will be a little more light each day now! Soon the shadows won't be quite so long at 2:30 in the afternoon. Soon evening chores won't seem to begin about four hours after morning chores are finished. 

And soon I'll be perusing gorgeous seed catalogs

and making notes for Garden 2015.

Soon!

Good morning.

~~~~~

porch, day three

Yesterday, when the carpenters and electrician had gone -

oh, did I mention the electrician?

It seemed sensible to add outlets while walls are open - 

I spent a good half hour just tidying up.

At one point, I was sweeping snow into a dustpan.

It was surreal.

But a lot of snow had been tracked in and packed down.

It had not melted on the cold porch,

but it would have made pools when the sun came out again.

Friday morning, before chores,

I stepped out to admire the overall progress.

The ceiling insulation was all in place, and most of the ceiling boards.

The kneewalls were wired, ready for insulating.

I looked at the time...

the carpenters weren't due for at least an hour.

The goats weren't calling for Room Service.

So, what the heck.

I started insulating the kneewalls.

When the carpenters arrived, I had only one little space left to fill,

but I quickly got out of the way and let them get to work.

It was good timing; my back was protesting all the leaning.

But gosh, it felt good to do a tiny bit of the work!

Today the remainder of the ceiling was covered,

and careful work began on the interior walls.
(You can left-click to embiggen these snaps, if interested.)

That's all native white pine, locally harvested and milled.

Hand-selected and driven home on the roof of that tireless workhorse,

the Little Green Sportswagon.

How I love wood.

It was a pretty good day!

Now the carpenters will be off til Tuesday,

which gives me time to resolve the gable question.

It's a pesky problem.

Feel free to weigh in with a comment -

I'd love to hear your opinions!

Backstory:

All along, even when the first builder was here,

finding an option for the gable was a major priority.

I do not want to close it in.

But every effort to find windows, old or new,

to fill even a part of the space - 

like a rectangle or square in the center,

or a transom across the bottom -

has been futile.

So far.

As you can see in the image below,

the tip of the peak has already been cut off by the new ceiling,

and it looks very different, but still okay.

And simply closing in the whole thing would look nice -

more wood!

What could be better?

Well, glass. Glass would be better.

Because I would really miss that view into the canopy.

REALLY.

Even from inside the adjacent parlor,

looking south into the porch and seeing that bit of sky and trees

makes a big difference in how the room feels.

And on the porch, the difference is huge.

It's like the difference between a nice room

and a nice space, I suppose.

A custom-built window to fit the entire gable is not a great option.

Even if I could justify the expense,

it would take weeks to have a window made.

The carpenter suggested a functional compromise:

closing in the peak with pine "for now"

so he can finish the interior construction,

but leaving the outside of the gable tar-papered for protection

until I find a permanent window to install.

Someday.

Maybe next Spring.

I told the carpenter that, rather than closing it in,

I would probably be happier with clear plastic 

stapled across the gable opening until I find a window.

He looked as if I had slapped him.

That's probably how I looked when he suggested closing it in.

I think we will all be keeping our eyes open this weekend,

looking for window options.

~~~

Other, easier weekend tasks:

making a decision on windowsill depth (fun!)

and a couple of trips to pick up more insulation,

to be installed between the floor joists.

This is going to be one cozy room.

Little by little!

Wishing you a delightful weekend!

~~~~~

wordless thursday

~~~~~