Ben's Blog

And it’s time to get back into it. This flight of stairs shall serve as a warm up.

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.