Ode to the Crowbar

So I thought I'd post some musings of mine since so far it's been all business when it comes to our posts. This house has been a crazy experience. I don't think I've loved an inanimate object this much in my entire life. Except for our crowbar. The crowbar is my new best friend. I remember a time at the beginning of the summer when Craig was cursing the fact that Andrew and I had no crowbar to offer him (he was trying to lift a wall with physics). After said moment we acquired a blue crowbar. I'll never again be without one. It is my favorite tool in the entire universe. I can lift myself with it, remove nails from any surface with practically no effort, use it to remove sticky stuff, or maybe you need something pried apart? Anything you ask of it the crowbar can achieve with ease. Plus, after reading some of "A Zombie Survival Guide" by Max Brooks it seems the crowbar is also a premium zombie fighting weapon. Who knew?

So what has building this house done for me? Aside from all the obvious benefits of financial gain and not having to rent? Confidence. That's right boys and girls after you learn to wield every kind of power tool imaginable you can do anything. If you add exhaustion into the mix it just makes everything in the world seem so much simpler. Having difficulties at work? No problem. I'm up until 10pm every night working on a house so anything else is just not a worry. You become a person who can say, whatever happens just move on to the next thing.

Sure Andrew and I have our emotional roller coaster moments. Sometimes, we both lay awake at night running through all the things that have to be done the next day and see no end in sight. But Andrew and I have become closer then ever through this experience of building a domicile. It takes a lot of trust and respect for your partner to take on such a huge project. I'm really happy that Andrew could trust me enough to even suggest that we do such a thing. When Andrew and I decide to do big things like going on the Appalachian trail or building a house people tend to say things like, "This experience will make or break your relationship." Well it seems that it is making our relationship. I sure do love that boy! Would this be considered to much PDA (public display of affection)?

Regardless we would not be able to do a lot of the things that we do without the love and support of our friends and family members. So thank you everybody who help us keep our sanity.

Also the installation of the fan was a crowning moment for Andrew and I. Whenever anyone comes to the house we plug it in for them and ask them to marvel at it's splendor. Although, by the looks on their faces they don't seem to realize why we're so excited. "See, do you see the fan spin and the lights turn on...isn't it GLORIOUS!"

The Deck!!!

Wide open spaces

click to enlarge

This weekend we were very excited to remove the scaffolding over the open living room to expose the tall ceiling and open design. It looks awesome! We had to finish the ceiling over that part first, and even install the ceiling fan even though we don't have anything else finished or electricity for that matter. That didn't stop me from temporarily wiring a plug onto the fan lead so we could see it run and even use it as a work light.

We also finished the last of the fiberglass insulation, which is a relief. It is a rather miserable experience to handle that stuff. We installed almost all the vapor barrier, some of the next layer of insulation, which is polyisocyanurate foam, and some of the 2x4 furring strips which go over that to create channels for wiring.


This photo shows various stages: Fiberglass with vapor barrier on the left, then the staple holes and seams taped in the bottom, and the foam insulation on the top. Note the black chimney support which shows the location of the wood stove.


Fully operational ceiling fan!