Little House in the Big Woods - Put A Lid On It

 

As if from heaven above, the long-awaited roof trusses descend. The house rebuilding project is resurrected.

 

In case you haven't noticed, everything in the world is out of phase.

Same rule applies to constructing a house in 2021. No matter how one tries, one just can't link the materials, with the labor, with the permits, with the best prices with what I wish, I wish, I wish would happen. 

Me and my home rebuilding project are discombobulate; the hip bone is not connected to the leg bone - oh hear the word of the Lord! The old spiritual sings of resurrection and the Prophet Ezekiel's vision of dry bones rising up and being restored to life. Oh, dem bones goin' rise again, hear the word of the Lord!

From my on-site trailer home, I look across the land and in my vision is a skeleton, a skeleton of a house. Bare bones and a pile of sticks and studs. Because I am in the Pacific Northwest during a record-setting amount of rainfall, and not in Israel, dem bones I see is anything but dry. But I have faith, because dem bones goin' to rise and become a full, flesh and blood house. Have faith and you will see the restoration of the that old house that burned. Yes, dem old house bones will be resurrected.

Oh Lord, how long must I wait? cries the prophet. The bones of the house are framed and rise above the remaining foundation, but the framed house is still bare bones. I wait. At the beginning of December the framing crew moves to another job for lack of anything to do here. Dem dry bones get soaked with the rain that continues to fall on the just and the unjust alike. I have nothing to do but wait. Wait for the promised resurrection.

Part of the problem and the delay is that we are redesigning major elements of this house on the fly. Where once a flat roof was planned, those plans were scrapped because a flat roof is incompatible with the skylight over the kitchen. New plans, new engineering, new design, new truss package and more delays - unfortunately delays are not new to this project.

On December 8, 2021 the skies clear, the clouds part and as if from heaven on high; the long awaited roof trusses are delivered. The crane lifts them up and my roof trusses descent from the sky. I have seen the resurrection.

 

Truck load of progress arrives, December 8th, 2021

 

Construction site

Up they go to get nailed down

 

Framing crew puts a lid on the house.

 

Roof trusses are lowered for the crew to put in place.

 

High-ceiling trusses go on the redesigned roof, no longer a flat roof.

We started in the basement on November 2nd and by mid-December we have reached the roof. It has taken six weeks to top it all off. With the roof decking stretched across the roof trusses like new skin on dem old bones, the old, burnt and dead house has risen again. Time to put a lid on this chapter.

The old bones of the former house have been resurrected. The newly risen house has a new skin on dem bones. Hallelujah!