Long Time No Blog

It's been a week of rejigging, general contracting duties, seeing Ruth off on a much-needed vacation, trying to dam the leaks in the project management schema. Add to that, I sent my point & shoot camera with Ruth, so I didn't take any pictures until today.

When last I blogged, we had installed 19 or the 20 windows and had much of the roofing done. As of yesterday, we have the windows done, the roofing done, 70% of the doors done, the basement ready for concrete, the plumbing almost complete, and the electrical just barely started.

I've been able to secure the best possible option for our drywall finishing... in the person of a longtime and not-often-enough-seen friend, David Ives. David is a British-trained plasterer who has done work for us in the past and, beyond being a prince of a fellow, is a superb craftsman. More good karma is headed for Ruth's Ridge.

That said, winter is heading our way. Ruth and I spoke on Wednesday night after they arrived in Wyoming on their way to Brian Head, Utah. They drove through lots of snow from Belle Fourche, SD to their destination that night. Here on the asteroid, we've already had one night of frost, with bone-chilling winds and cloud during the days. Among my multi-various medical complaints is one recently identified as pernio. Bluntly put, I am biologically allergic to cold. Anything below +8° C causes infarcts on my fingers and toes. These, in turn, cause the skin to split and create such nerve damage that even the slightest touch is excruciating. So far, gloves have both protected me from its onset and have provided a great excuse for my non-productivity this past week. Unfortunately, excuses will not get the house done any sooner and, given that the plumbing and electrical must be done and approved before we can apply vapour barrier and insulation, I can't afford any excuses or delays. I'll have to find some way of soldiering on.

Speaking of soldiering, we have a new canine in the family. The mnenonic connection is her adoptive name of Sadie. Ruth obviously missed Judee much more than she'd imagined, as she began poring over online listings and fielding many offers from her fellow-pooch loving friends. Long story short, she inquired about a four year-old Maltese/Bichon cross and, two weeks ago tomorrow, she answered the door to a woman carrying a kennel with said dog. She (Ruth) was apparently an answer to prayer, the woman having reverse-searched our address from the name and having driven 80 miles into Winnipeg. After five or six days of abject confusion, Sadie seems to have adopted us. Unfortunately, having identified Ruth as her alpha, alpha left for Utah. I, the non-alpha, became the principle caregiver. As such, Sadie joined the daily pilgrimage to Ruth's Ridge. Yesterday and today, after a couple of days of orientation, I unleashed the hound and, in the process, discovered that Sadie is really a white comet. She screams over the terrain, white hair flapping violently in the vortex she creates. Hers is, literally, a boundless exultation in joy of movement. I need to learn from her, although my limping, muscle-strained dance of housebuilding is an attempt to express that same joie de vivre.

So, today (Saturday) I did my best to be onsite by 9 a.m. As I pulled in around 9:12, I found Rick & Julie Fast's car already there. They are friends from All Saints' Anglican, who were first friends from our abortive attempts at ballroom dancing. While they and Ruth glided, I bombed.

Anyway, Rick & Julie love building projects, having for the past number of years worked together on their dream cottage north of Gimli. They and I share an employment history in corporate communications: Rick as Director of Communications for MCC Canada, and Julie as owner of a graphic design business. Based on a conversation with Julie at church, Rick opted not to work on their cottage today, and offered to help me get started with the electrical wiring phase of Ruth's Ridge instead.

To add historical meat to the mix, Jim Rodger had been an admirer of Rick's first professional work as a communicator when he was editor of the Stonewall Argus. Jim & Johanna showed up with Freya, their pooch, and a loaf of Zuccini bread in the early afternoon. Between mouthfuls of baked goods they got reacquainted. A six-some for dinner on Ruth's Ridge is to follow sometime after 11/15.

Last night, I arrived at Home Depot around 9 p.m. Happily, I found Gord (not the Gord in plumbing) working in the electrical section. Within 45 minutes, he helped me source and spend $3,000 on wiring bits & pieces. Today, after a leisurely introduction to my past 11 weeks' work, Rick & I began installing same around 10 a.m. By 4 p.m. we had installed the boxes in the workshop and garage... slowly having found our rhythm, as Rick put it.

I've had personal experience with the trinity of Gord. Most evenings when I walk into Home Depot Polo Park, I enjoy communion with Gord in electrical or Gord in plumbing. Both are about my age and know alot more about their respective areas of expertise than I do so, when I buy with their help, I become enlightened by their knowledge. What a deal. And fun. And educational. And relational. What this project was meant to be.

Time for some sleep and another kick at the Ridge tomorrow. (Unfortunately, both Ruth and I will miss participating in an All Saints' evensong featuring Bach's "Jesu, meine Freude." The prices we pay.