On the grittier side

 A horse turn-out

Lots of shoveling that day! Sand and gravel.

Allow me to introduce you to Shawn. This man is incredible! He can build and/or repair pretty much anything. He also has the hands of a healer. I learned so much from working with him, and that learning continues, even without the work. Not just about building skills and practices, but about integrity.

The dome house

Painting the dome house, west of Austin. This was a dawn 'til noon kinda job. Come high noon, it was not only unsafe to be on that roof--what with the Texas heat and all--the paint quit behaving properly--what with the Texas heat and all.

Fancy Flooring

11,000 pounds of hardwood flooring carried by hand up the stairs in one day! Come 3PM, I was pretty sure that I was going to die. Come 6PM, I felt good about what we'd accomplished.

This pic and next, a bit of before and after.

The next four pictures, especially the last one, I want you to behold the master work of Shawn. Scribe cutting floor planks is never easy, and these planks were particularly cantankerous. Shawn even had to invent and build a tool that allowed us to position the planks with a sledgehammer! without damaging the material. Trust me, this tool was born of necessity.

You see those curved, 8" tall baseboards? We did that.

The Cowboy's House

Installed windows and doors, and then clad the entire house with Hardie board siding and trim. 

You know that stuff's made out of concrete, ya? Heavy, and breathing too much of the dust from cutting comes with its own specifically named syndrome...silicosis.

The best part was the framing saw we affectionally called 'The Tazmanian Devil'.

Custom utility doors.

Again, Shawn is teaching me much. His practice of mastery never ceases to amaze me!

When screwing that metal frame into place, I was humbled. He was inside the box there in the wrong position for driving screws. So, I was to put them in place. Well, one of them I just couldn't get. Then, from his out of place position, with his non-dominant hand...zip, right in!

Then he said, "Don't worry about it. Ten years' experience for that trick right there." You see, mastery isn't 'betterness', and it most certainly isn't 'best-ness'. It's experience, knowledge, and intention.  Mastery isn't something one attains, it's something one practices.

Also, we clad the garage in pine. Buckets of screws!!

The Wine Cellar (or apocalypse fallout shelter)

I was in and out of this project from beginning to end. Oh my God, this thing! The stories of challenges, subcontractor shenanigans, anger, grief, triumph, and joy are many, and I'll leave them to your imagination.

Iron doors.

Yeah...floor, walls, and ceiling are concrete--thick concrete

Great acoustics!