A mess

"A good home must be made, not bought."

Joyce Maynard, "Domestic Affairs"

If making a "good home" starts with a mess, a good home we will have! Our building site has stacks and stacks of recycled lumber in various stages of completion. There are piles with the nails removed; piles still to have the nails removed. Piles needing washing; some already washed. Piles of differing sizes and types -- cedar, fir, hemlock 2x8's, beams, siding. Other piles of purchased wood -- plywood and 2x4's and osb. Then there are the electrical supplies, plumbing parts, rolls of tar paper, insulation, and boxes and boxes of nails and screws. In addition, utility trenches are uncovered, waiting for the final wires and hookups and inspections. Add to that the neighbor's rv, our storage tent, and a million tools. Walking about safely is almost impossible. Although each day includes site cleanup the mess grows and grows and grows. Fortunately, from time-to-time a mess is also eliminated.

Brad, Annie and the carriage doors

Brad has been working on installing the carriage doors (obtained from a home being demolished in Edmonds) to secure the work shop. The carriage doors were our first recycled purchase, one we found on Craig's list and purchased from Re-Use, a brokerage firm hooking up old building materials with interested users. Once the doors are installed, that will be one less pile-on-site, and one more completed project. This past Sunday, Erin covered a huge trench eliminating an ankle breaker. Shortly we'll have enough soil graded, lumber used, or properly stored, trenches filled, and construction far enough along, that we can complete the driveway and finish it up with gravel.

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A celebration of beginning and completing tasks happens every day on a construction site.