It seems like we have been working on our cabin for a hundred years. I guess it hasn’t been that long, but if I had hair, I am sure it would be a bit grayer than when we started. Nothing has gone wrong, but it is just a slow process for us to build the whole place by ourselves. We finally decided to help a little with that exact problem. Some folks who live up near our place are skilled at roofing and other things of the like and were willing to help us get a roof on the porch that my brother and I framed up a year ago.
We sort of do work as it seems necessary, and lately, interior things are taking precedence. We framed the roof a year ago because I need strong backs and weak minds to lift the beam that holds the porch roof out at the end of the porch. My brother was in town a year ago and fit the bill nicely so we framed it up while he was around. The roof itself was not critical and was low on the list. The lumber we used for the frame was treated wood so it had no problem being in the weather. We finally figured that although the lumber didn’t mind the rain, we did. When my neighbors agreed to do some roofing, it seemed like a perfect opportunity and they did a heck of a nice job roofing our porch framing! It is absolutely wonderful to be able to get out of the rain when we work out there now!
In addition to the porch roof, the guys got up on the roof of the house itself, a 10/12 pitch roof, and poked my chimney pipe through so we can install the wood stove we bought two years ago. We had to use an ugly orange silicone boot to seal the pipe opening from the weather but I guess it doesn’t look too bad. It’s on the side of the house you don’t really see much anyhow. And for the ability to have a wood fire to keep us warm, I can handle the looks!
While my friends worked on those things, Emily and I continued hanging drywall and bead board on the ceilings. It is sort of miserable work hanging any sort of wall covering, but we are mostly pleased with the results. It’s not so bad working inside this year as we also got our baseboard heat installed. I wired in a total of 5 baseboard heaters to the house and it keeps the place evenly and toasty warm! We will burn a fire when we are there, but the main source of heat will remain electric.
With the improvements we have been making lately, it actually feels like we could almost live in it pretty soon! I am so excited to be able to head out to the place and just goof around! I know we will find endless projects, but it will be nice to have a place to go and relax between projects! I expect we may even spend a little time with all of our neighbors enjoying the wood fire in the winter and the front porch in the summer!