Great Day for XC Skiing

We bushwacked (using contour lines on our gps) a trail off an old abandoned road and ended up looping back to where we started!

Showing our nephew, Justin, the cabin.

Today's Commute

I LOVE the snow!

  

Gables Are In!

Last weekend Ryan, Andrew, my brother John, his son James, Sandy, Yo and I put the gables in on Saturday. The work was done in one day! Ryan found the amazing window at Second Chance in Baltimore. We will put in more windows later. The first floor wall beneath the picture window is designed for sliding glass doors leading to a wrap-around deck. The cottage is sealed enough now that we can sleep in it using a small propane heater. Anyone interested in coming up for some winter skiing or snowshoeing?

Beautiful Montage of the Barn Raising

Constantia made the most beautiful montage of our barn raising. It brought tears to my eyes. So many friends and family bring enormous joy and love to the world.

Click on the Vimeo link to see:

https://vimeo.com/53128213

Portable Pizza Oven at the Ithaca Farmers Market

Ryan designed a similar oven for our cottage. Maybe we need to make it portable so that it can roll out to the deck. :-)

Who Knew Barn-Raising Was So Popular!

Arianna Huffington: How Hurricane Sandy Downgraded the Election and Upgraded Our Barn-Raising Spirit

Arianna Huffington: Hurricane Sandy may have been downgraded from Category 2 after it barreled through the Caribbean, but it sure didn't feel like it. What was unmistakable, though, was how quickly and completely Sandy downgraded our election. As Sandy moved in, the election was almost literally moved off the map. But Sandy didn't just knock the campaign off the front pages; it transformed it as well. At a moment of extreme polarization, Mother Nature brought us together. Suddenly the artificial walls that our political process erects to separate us into little demographic micro-groups to make us believe we have no mutual interests got blown away by the massive hurricane. The collective effort, the we're-all-in-this-together spirit, has been great to see. But it shouldn't take a natural disaster to make us tap into our natural humanity.

Getting Ready for Sandy

Yo and I went out to the build site Saturday to bring in all the loose wood, reinforce the door and tie down any outside elements. We stayed late and cooked pizza over the campfire.

Best pizza ever!

Then Sunday Yo, Julie and I went out and installed 55 hurricane joist ties! The house is tight as a bug and we are all set for the weather!

Day 2: Set 5; ROOF IS ON!!!

Day 2: Set 4