A Raised Eyebrow

   I drove home from California Saturday and Sunday, and it sure feels good to be here. Home is where the heart is, and my heart is here.

  Monday the lumber delivery came and by Tuesday, weather permitting, Ed was out sorting and cutting it up. He was using the big 2"x12" pieces to cut the headers for the big eyebrow dormers that define the entire house. They have to be perfect because not only do they shape the building but they support the roof trusses. They are in a perfect arc, so he took his time with the layout. He stares off into space, then looks at me very intently and says, "Now these have to be 19' 6" so I'll measure them at 19'7". I'm going to make 1" notches for the trusses."
I smile and nod, but my eyes have glazed over. I know he's not really talking to me, but to his brain. That's ok, because it works.

He lays out the timber, he backs up 19'7", and taps a nail into the subfloor next to me, checks his measurements, and walks back to me, frowning.  "It's off by 1/8." he says. He pulls the nail and resets it.  Now he's ready to draw the arc onto the 2x12s.

Once those were drawn out, he just cut the excess off with the skil saw, and checked for fit. What a surprise...they're perfect.

So up they went, and they just make such a difference to the look of the frame. These eyebrow dormers are really the defining feature of this house.

It began to rain, then hail. Just about the time Ed got all the tools inside, the sun broke out. It was like some cosmic version of The Itsy Bitsy Spider.

Not one to waste a minute of sunshine, Ed kept at it. By midday yesterday the south wall was standing, and by the end of the workday yesterday, the north and south walls were up.

Oh...you noticed. Yeah, those gorgeously curvy header pieces are off. Don't worry, they'll be back. This baby will have plenty of curves, front and back.