Parapets and Presents; Gifts and Grace

Photo copyright Aji, 2016; all rights reserved.

We were down a man today on the crew; Buffy had baling to do, so it was just Toney and José. Except not "just," because these two guys are flatly phenomenal.

Yesterday, they had finished the cross-beams, laid the waferboard over them, and built the parapet on the west side of the house. Today, they built the parapet on the east side, which is what you see above. They also blocked in both of them from the inside (more waferboard); they call it "sheeting," and it's necessary before they can install the BRI (the torchdown roofing).

They also did this:

Photo copyright Aji, 2016; all rights reserved.

In other words, they blocked and built the parapets along the front of the roof, too. This probably doesn't look like a a big deal, especially from this distance, but it requires a great deal of precision cutting, and the leveling has to be checked every step of the way. It's detail work, and the two of them hauled through it in one day.

This morning before he left to take care of his hay, Buffy called the hardware store/lumberyard for an estimate on the BRI and arranged to have it delivered yet this week so that we wouldn't have to wait until Monday, when the place is a zoo. And they showed up less than two hours later:

Photo copyright Aji, 2016; all rights reserved.

This stuff is heavy. It's packaged in rolls, and the stuff is dense:

Photo copyright Aji, 2016; all rights reserved.

They deliver nearly everything via forklift anyway, but this stuff really required it. And the reason it's being delivered on the east side?

Photo copyright Aji, 2016; all rights reserved.

Because José knows his stuff. Rather than the two of them try to lug those massive rolls up the stairs, he simply told the guy to drive around the pad to the east side and raise the lift — and then he dragged it in through the opening for the upstairs window. It's where they need it, and they didn't have to risk their backs getting it up there.

They won't start the BRI installation until Monday. They've got other tasks for tomorrow, and then they'll be off for the weekend. But the roofing materials are now all bought and paid for, and once the BRI has set? They're going to paint it silver, to help with insulation and cooling. [Something that never would've occurred to us, but they know what they're doing. Toney has the same kind of roofing on his own house.]

We still need shares, no question: of our YouCaring page via the widgets provided, especially the code from lower right that produces this:

And shares of Wings's site, because sales of his art are our livelihood, and they're funding the balance of the construction beyond donations. If you're thinking of commission holiday gifts, it's time to begin the early phases of the design process, so hit me up via the Contact form and I can get you in his queue.

In the meantime, gifts began arriving a day early. [Yes, I turn OLD tomorrow.] A dear friend sent us a set of tiles that will be installed on the wall, four different birds. As he put it, the house needed more wings. They arrived today. Then late in the day, my s-i-l showed up with her youngest granddaughter (she has three, stair-stepped at ages 7, 8, and 9, and she takes care of them all). 

They brought me this swag:

Photo copyright Aji, 2016; all rights reserved.

A bouquet of pink and white roses and lilies. What you see to the left, that looks like a bunch of yellow aspen leaves? That's exactly what it is. Kalei jumped out of the truck with them clutched in her hand; apparently at school today she collected all of them she could find so that she could give me another "bouquet." Yes, I cried; what's your point?

Also this:

Photo copyright Aji, 2016; all rights reserved.

The blanket is from Nes and the whole family, and it is heavenly. It's microfleece, and incredibly thick and plushy, and it feels like velvet. Of course, Natives can never have too many blankets, but this one's patterning looks kind of like our beadwork where I come from, and it's technically a throw, so I can wrap up in it every morning when I first get up. The card in the back is from all of them; the three in the front our hand-made cards by each of the three girls. The middle girl also gave me what I really wanted for my birthday: a horse. 

Behold:

Photo copyright Aji, 2016; all rights reserved.

That is a horse. And one that won't eat us out of house and home, yet.

Today was crazy-busy, and tomorrow will be more of the same. Wings is taking me out for dinner tomorrow night, because it's something that we virtually never do, and it's really the only thing I want, just to eat someone else's cooking and unwind for an hour or two. I got my birthday presents long ago. They're still ongoing.

And then there was the one I never could've anticipated. When they were about half-finished with the front parapets, Wings called me over to show me the progress. We were talking to the guys, amid jokes and much laughter, and suddenly my red-tailed girl soared into view. She visibly reacted to the laughter, and veered sharply off course to come and join us. She flew directly over the house, overhead, and hovered, facing Wings and me, then bent one wing downward toward us, then the other. She waited a moment, hovering, until we acknowledged her greeting, then wheeled around and headed eastward. She circled partway back one time, as though bidding us a farewell for the day, then turned again and banked for the peaks northeast, her original flight path.

It's rare to be able to develop a friendship with a wild creature; rarer still one it's a spirit of the air, and a powerful raptor besides. But she knows us now, knows our voices, knows our moods, and she comes and greets us.

It feels like a blessing, like a gift, like grace.

All content, including photos and text, are copyright Aji, 2016; all rights reserved. Nothing herein may used or reproduced in any form without the express written permission of the owner.