June 25: Hit the Deck

In just a day, we have the deck, or most of it. Tomorrow, if it doesn't rain and rain and rain, the basement floor might be poured.

Lakefront Property

We've had enough rain in the last few days to make up for last year's drought and then some. I'm stressed about the stress on the south wall, where the water is sitting there with no place to go. Let's hope those buttresses are doing their job.

June 24: First Framers

The first framing went up today: the stairs to the basement are materializing, along with impressive beams and posts that will carry the weight for a hundred years or so.

June 21: Flying Buttresses

"Look at those flying buttresses!" said friend Patty. The foundation has been backfilled. Let's hope those walls are CURED. For structural integrity, steel rods run through the walls, and buttresses on the inside push back against all that dirt.

And here's the view from the front:

Selections: Let the Fun Begin

I'm lucky enough to have a brother who's an architect, a brother-in-law who's a builder, and a sister (married to said bro-in-law) who has been building and remodeling homes for a couple of decades. I could not do this without them. Sistah came to town this weekend, armed with expertise, to help with selections. Here are a few resulting ideas:

Copy these gutters from the Red Gym?

Possible stair design to the front door?

Favorite find: bathroom fixtures in Sushi Muramoto!

June 11: The Reveal

Still on schedule. Concrete poured yesterday, and the forms came off today. Now it will sit and cure until a week from Friday, when they backfill, using those mountains of dirt. Hopefully it won't look so fortress-like once the ground is level. Hopefully...

The view from the street end of the driveway:

June 7: The Third Dimension

The forms are up, adding a Z axis to the X and Y. Concrete will be poured on Monday. The form boards will come down Tuesday. How do they do this so fast?

Hello, 2425 Kendall Ave!

Less than 100 hours ago, the granary still stood, facing Highland Ave. Today...

View of the great room, southwest corner:

View of the front-door-to-be:

Dan, with address confirmed:

June 3: Gone

7:55 a.m. text from Dan: "Farewell"

9:35 a.m. text from Sarah: "The little house's bones, all in a pile"

1:22 p.m. text from Dan: "Gone!!"

June 2, 2013: The Final Night of 311 Highland Ave

While we stood on the deck for the last time, we toasted the century with champagne, lit a candle for the spirits, and carried a stick of smoldering sage and lavender through the little house to calm and sweeten the air. Bob played taps. The evening was beautiful: clear, blue sky, with clouds like pillows. Good night, little house.

Photo Credit

Except as noted, the photos in this blog are taken by Lena, well on her way to a career in archiving, journalism, art ...

June 1: Venting

Lena vented for a good 20 minutes. Literally. After she was finished lobbing rocks through windows, there was a great deal more airflow through the granary. A rare opportunity: venting one's pent-up energy/angst/frustration/hostility via sanctioned vandalism. "That felt awesome," she said.

Friday, May 31, 2013

An orange fence went up, neatly rolled out and staked by John:

What's left of the granary, after the firefighters, Habitat, and the metal recyclers have had their day, goes into the Demolition Dumpster on Monday. That new dumpster (not to be confused with the metal recycling dumpster) is in place on the new rock driveway. The giant bulldozer is poised. Dan says it will take only one day. Maybe even just an hour or two.

Wednesday, May 29, 2013

Today, a dip in the roller coaster ride. The little corner garden of refugees had been trampled and tossed. Bulbs and bleeding hearts stomped into the ground, hostas torn off at the base and flung about, a large mass of iris dug up and left on its side like a fish on the dock. I could have attributed it to luggish footwork of oblivious dumpster and bulldozer managers, except for the gasping iris. Ah well. The iris are tucked back in. Hopefully the rest of them will be back next year. No photos today.

Tuesday, May 28, 2013

There’s a giant dumpster in the middle of the yard. "I asked for a 12-foot one and they sent a 20," said Dan.