Several tasks were accomplished today in preparation for a big sheathing push, and to get everything ready for the roofers.
Making holes to allow the air to flow under the roof.
Insect screen
Nice, tight & aerated 
600 heads of garlic unearthed
There will be no vampires tonight.
An unfinished house is perfect drying space.
Haven't touched a hammer in 10 days
And it’s time to get back into it. This flight of stairs shall serve as a warm up.
Cool Duplo Project #44 – Face
Behind the mask
I expect more experimentation with faces to follow.
Dry & Shaded
My brother & I have been pushing for 6 days straight to get a roof on before the next rain. Yesterday we reached this holy grail after 2 days of intense roof sheathing. Intense because working 20ft high is draining for you have to be alert at all times. Intense because the Sun does not relent. Intense because lifting half a ton of sheathing material up a 20ft ladder is no joke.
Unloading, cutting & rigging station
Up it goes
Many swear words later
The same night we had a little camp fire to celebrate and we heated enough water for a bin I could fit in. Words won’t do justice to describe the experience, bear in mind I hadn’t taken a hot bath in more than 2 years, nor a hot shower in several months. Not that I mind a cold shower, it’s a great way to end a long Summer day. This only serves to say the experience along with the stress of the roof having vanished left my body relaxed to a point where I could barely walk home. I slept like a log, but this also is a pale metaphor for how I slept and how much the softness of my bed meant to me when all my hands had known for several days were dry rough wood, splinters and scorching surfaces.
The rain came the next day and the addition stayed dry even though the walls aren’t fully sheathed. It would take quite a bit of rain and wind for it to be an issue (not unheard of…). In the meantime, we are appreciating a new dry, shaded space and the huge milestone the roof represents.
Gave the berries some much needed TLC
Took the weeds down, added mulch and a fence
Roof line complete, getting ready for rafters
This beam, being a triple 2x12x24′, was a bear to put in place
2 walls up
This house is going to be huuuuuuuuge compared to what we’re used to.
My favorite activities when building are discovering the view of a framed window and seeing how the house fits in the land.
More bird feeder news
This helpless woodpecker fledgling & his mom have been visiting the bird feeder. He always has a feather sticking out awkwardly and doesn’t move around so well. He bumped into our window and couldn’t figure out how to eat from the feeder while his face was literally stuck in the feed. He’s the goofy little woodpecker, his mom does all the work.
Raided by 5 birds simultaneously
Photo credits: my brother.
Slow motion finch
I had this guy hover in front of my window many times one day, I thought he was trying to come inside but Rich pointed out he probably saw his reflection and was trying to pick a fight with it. Come to think of it, I had seen it chase another finch earlier.
Bringing the bird feeder this close to the big window has been nothing short of amazing, we call it “watching the big TV” and Robin’s been very much into it.
3 on the same feeder
Don’t miss the hummingbird
2nd subfloor framing almost done
The platform for the stairs joins the vertical beam holding the subfloor. Through the magic of computer models, everything lines up perfectly. I never need to make calculations as I build, I cut where the 3D model tells me and I check to make sure I’m true to it. This is particularly useful for angles, I’ve impressed seasoned carpenters by laying all the pieces of a wall full of angles trusting they’ll all fit together in the end.
