At Last

The band at left is known as "The Mojomatics". These guys are a great Maine blues band - the real deal! Tommy O'Connell on harp/vocals and Mike Hayward guitar are long-time Maine blues scene vets. Mark Perez on drums and Mike Van Summern on bass are newer to the scene but they have the chops too! They host a blues jam in Freeport at a bistro/music bar called "The Venue". It's a high quality jam at a great place and I been going there to jam for about a month. A great way to unwind and play some bass with some great musicians.

We signed the contract to purchase our land today! Finding and buying this land has been a long process. Some prime construction time has elapsed while we've been planning, ruminating and negotiating. But this has been the rainiest summer in Maine, maybe ever. So construction would have been delayed anyway. During this time, Cheryl and I have been working hard to solidify our plans on many fronts.

First, we have decided to build a First Day Cottage as our permanent residence. See last month's blog for more on First Day. The more we looked at the First Day Cottage designs and concept, the more we felt drawn to make this our permanent home. This concept was strengthened by visiting a completed home in Bar Harbor. We talked with the owners/builders for several hours and came away feeling very good about First Day. This is not to say that we will not someday build an earth-bermed house. For now the First Day Cottage permits us to quickly and economically build a beautiful and energy efficient home. We are planning on the saltbox 1-1/2 story design, 24ft x 33ft., about 1300 sq. ft. Cheryl has put together a floor plan that provides a wonderful kitchen space, his and hers offices and a place for Jane upstairs. She also included her special love - a screened porch! Quite important in Maine.

In addition to the cottage, we are also planning a greenhouse, shop/barn and a chickenhouse. We've spent the last two days laying out the homestead, first on paper then with stakes full-size on the land. We had to remove a bunch of underbrush and saplings just so we could see to lay out the stakes. It's quite a job trying to plan how a group of buildings need to be positioned on a site, particularly when most of the buildings need maximum solar exposure. While trying to get proper solar performance, we also don't want the place to look like a strip shopping mall. A significant factor influencing the site layout is the septic leach field. We're planning to have the septic system designer out this week so he can tell us where the field will go and how big it will be. The picture above is our first structure on the land. With the high mosquito population, it's an especially welcome shelter!

So many details in building a new home on raw land. Well, septic, 1/8 mile long driveway, utilities, site excavation, tree clearing, town building codes, land survey, title search and on and on. And there's that little challenge of staying within budget while getting done on time. Since we started part way through the summer, we've lost a fair amount of building time. So we're working like dogs to get things lined up prior to closing on the land to permit getting a fast start.

All the brush cutting and hauling we've been doing lately has also showed us how out of shape we are. Cheryl and I have both been driving desks for quite a few years now. I especially have gotten very little in the way of heavy workouts since I've been renting a house. When I was 41 I could work like mad for a long time before getting fatigued. Now that I'm 51 and mostly sendentary, things are way different. So Cheryl and I have to work up to manual labor required for this job. Eventually we will get back in shape with all the work that needs doing on this project! And yes I'm wearing all the proper safety gear for using a chainsaw. Still got to constantly keep your wits about you though!

Jane and Cheryl recently returned from a 4 day visit to Michigan. The visit enabled Jane to go with her former church group on a camping trip to South Manitou Island. Cheryl spent much of her time catching up with family and friends around Grand Rapids. The 4 days didn't include travel time. Cheryl and Jane drove straight-through both directions which is about an 18 hour drive. Coming home they drove through the night so that Jane could get back to Maine for a rehearsal in an upcoming musical she is in. Jane rebounded quickly but Cheryl took several days to return to full strength. Driving all night is hard on 51 year-olds!

That's all for now - miles to go before I sleep!