As an aside, for the sake of my sanity and general well-being, I have chosen the innocuous word "week" as a title prompt in the build posts. But - and for the record - by no stretch of the imagination did this build flow weekly, sequentially without happenstance or obstacles. Just so we're clear.
I channeled the sun and warm weather to complete the rafters. The weather for this time of year was unprecedentedly warm, and dry, and so appreciated.
Between wall raising and foundation curing, the rafters were stained in groups of 6 or so and left to cure overnight. The next day the stained group of 6 was stacked inside the structure and a new group of 6 was laid out for staining. This went on until all 34 rafters were stained and cured.
Howard and I had both decided to forego a roof, at least while the sun was shining.
How does one argue with this view?
Or with the sun?
Or with the bluest sky and greenest pines? This became my meditation for the day. Literally thanking nature for its hand and generosity to the build.
A view from above. Howard, in the bottom right corner, works tirelessly to clean and organize, straighten and stack. His chair is down in the corner facing the sun, so he can rest and get vitamin D at the same time.
The rafters are so straight. I could not stop looking at them. At this juncture I am measuring the outriggers that will create the 24" gable ladder for the two foot overhang on the south and north walls. The outriggers will extend a total of 48 inches in theory. In practice, there may have been a bit of fudging to hit those measurement targets. In life, as in construction, rarely do the outcomes match the expectations. As a result, I keep my expectations at bay or eschew them altogether. This keeps everyone content.
At the end of the day, all the blocks had been installed on the interior. A second round of blocks had to be installed on the exterior, which would be the next day's task. Overall the interior was taking shape nicely and the weather...oh that sun. Just made everything perfect.
