What a difference a week makes!

It's been just a week since Jeff and I were here, and the progress is amazing! The exterior framing is almost done; the windows and shingles will arrive next week. As the walls begin to define the space, we're able to get a much better feel for what the interior will be like. This week we drove up with Barbara; spent a few hours poking around as the fog lifted; adjourned to Scandia Coffeehouse (http://www.scandiacoffeehouse.com/) for lunch with Jim Hall; and headed home. It's becoming a real ritual! Scandia does great lunches!

Downstairs looking east

          






Upstairs looking west



As usual, Barbara offered some great suggestions!



Hanging on just in case!

 



April 30th...... July 30th

Things are coming right along!

Camano dreamin'

The weather is so beautiful; warm, not too breezy.

Makes me wish I were there instead of here.

In 2006 I took a little paddle with Julie at  very low tide to the sandbar which was full of eagles and a smattering of herons and gulls. As we sat in the still waters, I scanned  the horizon and was able to count 80, before I stopped counting! Because there was no wind, I brought my camera and got some memorable pictures. (click on the photos to enlarge them)

Last summer Jeff and I enjoyed the hottest day in many years at Camano. After driving up from Bellevue in the blistering heat, we immediately threw on our swimsuits and joined our friends in the water! It was the hottest day in Seattle's history, 103 degrees!

Once upon the second floor

Jeff and I couldn't resist the urge to climb the ladder to the second floor. So while the crew was off having lunch, we did!

Here's the view looking south from the bathroom.

Here's the view looking southwest.

Looking west out our bedroom windows.

North through the family room doors to the deck.

Through the study window to the East.

Down into the  stairwell, and

Up through the  roof!

Raising High the Roof Beams - the Real Saga

As the morning mist was lifting, we were awakened from a comfy sleep by the drone of the compressor outside our window. The crew had arrived early to complete their work before the crane appeared.

In a few hours they would be placing all the support beams in the second story. The huge ridgepole went first.

Then a huge section of second story wall was coaxed into place. Every component is cut so close to the required size that piecing them together is like doing a complicated 3-D puzzle. It made for a couple hours of fascinating viewing.

Now the cross beams (forgive my terminology!) were put into place, followed by  the valley beams.  The outline of the roof is really taking shape.

In our next post, Bonney and Jeff do some exploring.....

:)

Raising High the Roof Beams!

We're spending two days here thanks to Greg and Gigi, our neighbors who graciously made their home available to us.

We came up to watch the raising of two  second story walls and the placement of the roof beams.

In complete comfort, we enjoyed a beautiful day, watched the work in progress, caught up with our friends, and had a productive outing for crab.

This is the Camano summer I dream about!

But where are the roof beams?

Tune in tomorrow for our next installment.

Musings from the tide flats

We planned this visit to Camano to replace the pulley line which had been chewed up by a large driftwood tree during a winter storm.

What is a pulley line, you ask. (you won't find the answer in Wikipedia!) Many of the people on the beach attach their little boats to pulley lines instead of moorings. One end of the line goes through a large pulley attached to the bulkhead, and the other end of the ~100 ft. line  runs through a pulley that is attached to a heavy object, sunk into the mud at very low tide. The ends are tied to  stainless clamps to close the loop.The mooring line of the boat can be clipped to the hardware. The advantage of this system is that the boat can float out in the water away from the churn of the surf. In early summer there are a couple extremely low tides for the purpose of  fixing  lines and checking the buoy chains for signs of wear.

In the picture above, you see what appears to be tracks running into the water. Back in the day, larger boats were launched on these tracks. Today few are still in use; others sit on the beach as a sign of days gone by.

The day's task was pretty straightforward. Jeff had made a cement block  with a stainless steel loop through which we ran the line. The muck at low tide was unforgiving; swallowing up my Crocs and almost getting Jeff's. But we dug our hole, placed the block standing almost knee-deep in the stuff, and slogged back to shore. I'm sure the sight of us gave a new meaning to "mucking around"!

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Meanwhile at the house, Mike was working away, adding the under layer for the future porch  and filling the large hole dug for the septic.

A friendly guy, Mike entertained us with stories of his own archeological finds, and gave us a quick lesson in the workings of our new septic. If you need to know more about septics, click this link: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Septic_system

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So much has changed, and yet so much lies ahead.

"Enduring Homes" the scaffold label reads. A sign of things to come...

Letters from Seattle July 2, 2010

....I just had to share with you the unsolicited compliments I have been receiving from my neighbors on the beach. They are so pleased with not only the work but the skill and efficiency of the carpenters on the job. In fact

one of them apparently helped rescue an elderly neighbor who had fallen out of his boat on Friday!

...The house looks great! We’re excited!

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.....We spent a delightful evening with the Coles, our friends and the folks who actually helped us start our 4th of July tradition at the beach!
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famous Hood Canal slug!- click on (any) picture to enlarge!

.....On  Sunday afternoon we went to the Donaldsons (Owen's folks) place on  Hood Canal.  Although Alan calls it "the Shack", the house is quickly outgrowing and out-styling that title!

It was a very relaxing day - and it didn't rain! Dinner was a feast , followed by games and fireworks under a calm clear sky.

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....Although we missed Camano, Jeff and I  thoroughly enjoyed sharing  our friends' celebrations. Crabbin season is underway! Thanks, Julie for making our first harvest so easy and fun!