Smells Like Dirt

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I got the barn wood ran on the ceiling above the wood stove Friday morning. Dad helped me hang the OSB on the kitchen ceiling which Mom later painted. We are going to cover that ceiling with a collection of old signs so there was no reason to waste money on material if it will just be covered. I also had enough barn wood to cover the wall facing the stove from the kitchen and I tried to jazz it up with running the boards on an angle breaking over a post just like you would see it in a field somewhere. That wood has a mostly gray color with some black and green mixed in from the sun and a little moss. It made the house smell like a garden so hopefully that will cook out after I burn the stove a few times. Things are moving quite well and each new day makes the check off list even shorter.

6.13.09

Maranda finally took a day off from work last week and we were able to prime all the sheetrock downstairs. We ran out of paint of course so on Friday Mom helped finish up the primer and gave me a hand one some other tasks. I used the roofing boards from the barn to do the wainscoting in the living room which have a rustic and brown appearance. I did not have enough gray ones for the living room so we decided brown colored wood would be alright as well. It only took a half day to run those pieces because the blocking was done right and the material was nominally straight. I was taken aback when the primer was done because it occured to me after 2 1/2 years the living room was almost finished...I am going to miss living in open framing.

Score

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Got to spend a day with Kyle and Old Nate who went to Kentucky with me and Maranda tearing down a barn at Larry's house. I was able to salvage quite a bit of oak and chestnut siding as well as roofing boards. This barn was different than the one I had pictures of earlier; that one turned out to be junk so we abandoned it and went to the other. We started by taking the metal roof off and worked down from there. I had never taken one apart before so the goal was to take it down opposite of how I thought it was built. Everything went well and Larry was happy to get rid of it and to salvage some good chestnut out of the deal...after all he did own it. I have already de-nailed half of the siding and should get the rest this morning while the drywallers are sanding. This should be enough for most of what I needed and I have a couple more leads if not.

6.6.09

We had the drywallers move in on Thursday last week but I could not take pictures of them hanging the drywall because my camera was stolen by a rogue who came and helped them. Micheal Billings of Wilkesboro, NC if any one knows him out there steer clear. Luckily we got it out of the pawn shop the next day without having to involve the law...who knows what else is missing. The should be able to complete the finishing relatively quickly.

Last Inspection

The only reason I say that is that I probably won't call for another one because all that is left is the final now and it may take years before we are ready for that...more years. We got the downstairs insulation finished and inspected this morning so the drywall crew should move in the morning. We loaded 50 12' boards in yesterday evening so the material is ready to go. I am nearing the end of the joy ride unfortunately and it is time to prepare for reentry into the "work for the man" world. I need to raise a few more funds to get us through the finishing of our home...but before I go, I am going to tear down a couple barns I scored for the siding. Believe it or not the inspector had this one that he gave me this morning as long as I haul off the junk...can do..so me and The Chew rode out and checked it out. This will do the remaining ceilings, wainscoting, bar, staircase, and trim on the first floor. It is what I need for sanity because the more rustic the better so slap 'er up. I got the first skirt board on the stairs and yes it was a 14" wide piece of chestnut so I hope it gets noticed. Some paint, cabinets and trim and it will be BBQ time.

5.29.09

The electricians got all finished up downstairs so I decided to make a push before insulation to fix all those nagging things. I started with the transition between the kitchen and wood stove area. There was about an inch and a half difference of elevation at the extreme and it tapered to nothing. I only had 8 inches in width to make it all work needless to say it was a challenge. I have been dreading that one for months. I finished the hardwood floors in the closets as well. I also had to put in all the blocking for the wainscoting in the living room. That should have been done months ago as well but I am sure I had a good reason not to ha ha. I should have done it before all the wires were ran because I was scared I would hit one and burn the house down...got to be worrieed about something each day.

Hide The Evidence

What better place to get rid of all the leftover small chunks of chimney and spring box than to cover them up with concrete on the back porch. The photo shows the first bag of 19. When I broke up part of the slap to run the plumbing for the back bathroom I found all kinds of rocks, bottles, trash, batteries...so when in Rome...I didn't cover up any batteries. I took out about a five foot section of the spring box for an entry onto the back porch which really sets off that are. I am going to lay tile on the pad one of these days but we will take it one day at a time. I also rebuilt the grapevine stand along the shop...I hate to see a 40 year old vine go to waste because I was lazy.