Construction Log #2 - Star Date 5.15.18

            When you purchase a home, you agonize and research the decision for months, comparing neighborhoods, square footages, and lots of variables before writing one very large check. When you build an addition on your home, it feels more like speeding down the highway with a truck bed full of cash and watching it cyclone away from your tailgate. 

            I did my homework and had a really good idea of how much things would cost and I’m not surprised by any of the expenditures. I’m just a little delirious at the pace.

            We’re framing now and walls are going up with the speed of weeds in an overwatered garden. It’s exciting to see our pencil and paper vision finally become a 3-dimensional reality.  Since I pulled the permit as an Owner-Builder, so much more falls on my shoulders. It’s me that makes sure we have a functional bathroom and electrical wires out of the way. It’s me that runs to Meeks for missing hardware, cleans up and preps work areas until midnight, buys lunch for hungry crews, and meets with all the various subcontractors. Oh… and it’s definitely still me that tries to run my normal job out of an improvised “office” space in one of the few rooms left in the house not completely demolished. But I am having a good time. My favorite moment thus far was setting a 6x12” beam off of my truck’s lumber rack.

            I still try to have Michael and Jane involved in our project. I organized a contest picking up nails with a retractable magnet, and had the kids put their handprints and names in a corner of the new garage slab. I use them to help with some of the safer demo, but kids will be kids and when you give them tools, well…

            “Michael, what is the purpose of construction fencing?” I ask.

            “So everyone knows we’re breaking stuff,” he responds.

            I shake my head to calm my nerves and try again. “No, Buddy. Construction fencing is a barrier to separate what we are building from the surrounding areas. Why is a barrier necessary?”  

            “So people don’t come into our construction.”

            “It’s actually the opposite. We need to keep our construction material and all of the walking we do off other areas that aren’t under construction so that we don’t damage them.”

            “Like the grass and the trees?” Michael asks.

            “Exactly. We don’t want to trample the grass or hurt the trees.”

            “Oh.”

            “So do you see why cutting lots of holes in our construction fence with scissors was a bad idea?”

            “Ok, Dad. I won’t do it again.”

            “Good. Now here’s some lengths of twine and some more fencing and the same pair of shears. Fix all the holes you made.”

            “Da—Ad.”

            “Now.”

            The vagabond-family juggling act continues for us too. When we get invited to friends’ houses for dinner, we show up with a bottle of wine, smile really big, and then ask if we can shower our kids and wash all our laundry.

            My mom felt bad for us and transferred a timeshare week to a local Tahoe resort. We enjoyed their 85-degree pool, taco and margarita night, and took advantage of their many amenities, just like a good tourist would. Jane explained our ‘staycation’ to her teacher as “Now we live in a hotel, but we go back to our trailer next week.”

            With the warming weather, the trailer has been much more enjoyable. We’ve set up a slackline and large tent for kid toys. We cook out on the grill and have friends over for s’mores. When they’re outside, we also don’t have to worry so much about the kids pushing any potentially disastrous buttons inside the trailer. Apparently, there’s this “button” we were warned about from the previous owners…it’s the “pop-out” button that collapses the trailer into itself.

            “Kids don’t touch any buttons, at all,” Wifey instructs.

            “Why not?” Jane asks.

            “One of them blows us up the trailer.”

            “Which one?”

            “I’m not sure.”

            We wouldn’t be as far along as we are without the consul and “borrowed brains” of many amazing locals. First and foremost, Josh Bruner is a genius when it comes to putting a complex house together. Jose and the crew at Meeks has been incredibly knowledgeable and seem to like it when I bring kids along for late afternoon material runs and to find their ‘secret soda machine.’ The City of South Lake Tahoe Building Department continues to be helpful and available. Alpine Metals, Caro Construction, Randy Vogelsang, Sierra Sustainable Builders, and Fall Engineering all have helped keep me on track and saved me time and money. Thanks, everyone.