Building, the Big City, Bee Stings and Love

For the most part, our farm office is complete. At least, the portion that we're going to be working on... We have to oil the earthen floor and then we'll be turning the place over (and the responsibility of finishing the house) to the land owners. It shouldn't require much more than a couple weeks of work to install the windows and doors, plaster the walls and insulate the roof. I'm a little disappointed that we won't get to see (or live in) the finished product, but still very satisfied with how things have turned out:

That green sheeting really makes the place pop. Can't get enough of this place... It's taught me so much. Well, not it specifically, but the process of building it did.

I'm also nearing completion of my sawhorse (no pics yet) and hoping to start on some benches by this weekend, with the intent of "installing" them in ANOTHER building in progress on campus, a yurt/sauna, or yauna (haha). I'll eventually get some pics of that as well.

Anyway, we ventured up to Portland this past weekend to visit some friends and explore the city:

I did do a ton of exploring on my own and found some really cool stuff (including a bar that shows Flyers games, a shit ton of karaoke bars and open mic nights, among other things) but I didn't take many pictures. I guess I was caught up in the moment. For your viewing pleasure, a real working drawbridge crossing the Columbia River on a beeeeeeeautiful autumn day:

I'm not sure Sizzle Pie thought this through:

And last but not least, some gorgeous fall colours on Sunday afternoon! This late in the season, I was happily surprised:

So with it being autumn, you'd think the bees have gone into hibernation. I wish. I've been stung by bees or yellow jackets or the like at least 6 times this year alone, so I guess you could say I've gotten used to it. But, for the first time, I found out Monday that I'm actually allergic to some kind of bee sting. Check out my bubbling skin:

Why I say some kind of bee sting is because I didn't actually see the bee or whatever did this to me. It was a really baffling experience. I was wearing 3 layers, and somehow it wedged itself through all 3 and stung me in the bicep. When I hastily pulled my shirts off, I found the half inch or so stinger still stuck in my arm, but no insect. I pulled it out and thought nothing of it and proceeded to go about my day, only to start feeling incredibly itchy and swollen all over my body about 15 minutes later.

Some suggested I go to the hospital. I did look pretty gnarly, but other than being a little delirious and experiencing some throat soreness, I knew I'd be totally fine if I just laid down and took lots of deep breaths. Many thanks to Chan and Nicole for making me tea, getting me echinacea tincture and lavender. It really sped up the recovery process, and for all I know, it might have saved my life.

In a seemingly fitting way to end this entry, I'm going to ramble a little. That experience was just one of many examples of love I experience on a regular basis. I loved Portland this weekend. I loved the Redwoods. I love everything I've learned here. But I'm not talking just about tangibles, and also not just about feelings I get from people and things that are here. There is love all around me, all around you, and all around the world, even though there is still so much hurt. It's expressions of love that I had completely lost sight of recently when I was working at a job that frustrated me, living in an atmosphere that overwhelmed me, and felt for some reason that the weight of society was crashing down upon me. It's sometimes easier said than done, but I'm really trying to focus myself to let go of anger and frustration and just love. Everything. Maybe that's what this journey has really been all about: love. Not love between a man and a woman, the love of a career or the love of oneself or family or anything in particular, but just love. Love for the sheer beauty of existing. It's something that's been difficult for me, and sometimes I still struggle with it, but we're all human, right? This was all spurred by a message I found sewn to a shirt I bought for a Halloween costume, a random message of love:

Until next time, love.

The Cob Job

This past weekend, I had the pleasure to work on a project with one of the instructors from the Shelter Series. Her and her team are doing a renovation of a former massage studio in downtown Eugene:

The structure is made primarily of cob (sand, clay, straw and water mixed in appropriate proportions) and timber. The former roof apparently wasn't up to par. I've been seeing more and more that an adequate roof is essential in working with cob. It's incredibly sturdy stuff once it's allowed to dry properly, and will remain sturdy basically indefinitely if kept dry. This particular structure was built about 20 years ago.

Part of the work included demolishing some existing sections where either water had been leaking onto for years, or some sections that just didn't feel like they belonged. As I said before, cob is sturdy stuff. Demolition was quite the workout. I didn't do much of that, instead choosing to focus on rebuilding the demolished areas and filling in areas near the new rafters. What was really freaking cool about that was that we were using the material we had just demolished to rebuild the structure. Just add some water (and maybe more sand and straw if needed) and mix again, then form it into a wall. It's a bit more complex than that, but you get the idea. No waste!

I spent a couple days doing that this weekend. Super labor intensive, but in the end, I felt really good about it, and met some really cool people too. They also took us to a yoga studio/sanctuary they have been working on for about a year and a half. I was a little overwhelmed by the place, but I did manage to snap 2 pics. First is a "keystone" detail that tugged at my heartstrings just a little. Second is an incredible stained glass flower pattern.

Yea, it was a good weekend.

The Woods of Red

I was feeling the need to take a few days away from this place that I've called home for the past two plus months, so I took a drive southward to the Redwoods National Park. Of all the places I've been on this adventure, this one definitely had the least amount of "activities" and tourist-y attractions, which is why it was so damned appealing. I basically drove 4 hours to camp, walk and stare at gigantic trees. And it was amazing. At this point, I will warn you that this is going to be a loooooong entry.

The first few hours of the drive down there were nothing spectacular. Lots of loud music, peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and coffee...oh so much coffee... You start to get a little antsy when you have too much caffeine and all you see are the same trees you've been seeing for the past few months. Cedar, cedar, doug fir, cedar, doug fir, ce- WHOA!

And then all of a sudden you see a really huge tree and you pull the camera out as fast as possible and take a picture of one even though you know it's going to turn out like shit because it's just that awesome. I don't know why, but I struggle for words to describe the feeling, and pictures can only scarcely grasp the scale of these things.

I paused briefly to take some pictures and scope out possible camping locations. A friend recommended this area, but it just didn't feel "right." This whole weekend was full of me feeling out and finding spots and things that felt good. This wasn't one of them, but it looked cool.

I kept on driving to the coast, which was not on my nonexistent agenda, but I'm glad I did. Somehow, I always find my way to the beach even if I don't mean to. Is that a sign? Anyway...

It was a really unique driving experience. In a span of just a few miles I was at sea level amid some of the densest fog I think I've ever seen, but just as quickly I was a hundred feet up a mountain that provided this amazing view of said fog blanketing the ocean at sunset:

If not for those trees in the foreground, I could have told you I was flying, and you would have believed me. I kind of felt like I was flying. Awesome, awesome stuff.

It was starting to get dark rapidly and I still hadn't found a place to camp, so I backtracked to the beach I had passed on the way down to the overlook because I saw some people there that looked like they might know something. They did, but nothing I wanted to pursue (paying $35 to pitch a tent for a few hours? Pshhh).

I found my way to a small county campground and pitched a tent in the dark, which is always an adventure. Due in large part to me being awesome, it worked. Of course, other than the redwood stump and the tree on the other side of the driveway, I didn't have any idea what the surrounding area really looked like until the next morning. A pleasant surprise:

Within this small park, there was still some exploring to do, so I did and found this nice little stream:

And I had a little fun, too:

I guess if your idea of fun is being eaten by a fallen tree...

I ventured out and drove into a tree. Amazing that I survived to write this blog post, right?

I'm not really a fan of cutting through the trees for the sake of creating a tourist attraction, but I didn't pay to get in and I did meet a nice Canadian family (they're all nice. I love Canadians) who were more than happy to take my picture. They also did not hesitate to denigrate my choice of hockey team, but I guess nobody's perfect.

I continued on my way in search of, well, whatever I could find. I found a big tree. No really. That's what it's called:

And for comparison's sake:

Crazy big branch up there on the left. I think it was actually another tree that sprouted in the same root system hundreds of years ago, and as the bigger tree continued to grow, it became a branch. I think, but I'm not sure. Anyway, take a closer look:

Oh, I found this neat little guy near there too:

I hiked around for a while, then stumbled into a tiny town called Orick:

It was a strange place, but the people were nice, and I didn't die from the tuna sandwich I bought at the cafe. There wasn't much else to do there, so I went back into the forest. I think it was around 3 at this point, and when I went back in there, I noticed how dark it was already inside the forest (ya know, because of all the big 'ol trees). Eerily beautiful in so many ways, but it made taking decent pictures a real challenge.

Even though this looks much like a dirt bank, this is actually a fallen redwood with other trees and plants growing on top of it:

I originally took this next picture because in one small grove, there were four different ages of redwood in a relatively confined space:

BUT upon further examination, I saw faces in the two big trees. By the way, I was totally sober at this point.

After looking at this picture again, I'm now noticing all kinds of crazy colors on the trees. Again, I'm completely sober.

The underside of a fallen redwood looks like an explosion:

Check out this curvy outgrowth:

I wish I had some rollerblades with me at the time...

There were several recently downed trees (hopefully due to natural causes), but none showed the destructive power of these giants quite like this one:

Which took out several other trees in the process, creating lots of free firewood:

I'm just kidding. Leave no trace (which means take everything).

I went back to my camping spot for the night, with no set plan for the next day. I woke up and felt beachy yet again, so I decided to take the coastal route back to Oregon (rather than heading further south into California, which also crossed my mind) and damn, was it beautiful:

I took my time and many more pictures and eventually decided to camp out on the beach, meaning my ol' boy has now been on a beach at the Atlantic and Pacific. What a happy car:

Not a bad sunset either. Let me tell you, sleeping there was not warm, but at least it was clear, starry and moony. Is that a word? Waking up there was strangely beautiful, too. As an East coaster, I'm used to the sun coming up over the water. Instead, my car was shrouded in darkness behind the dunes while the ocean shimmered in sunlight (and of course, I didn't take a picture. I remember, though).

I'm not sure how to end this post. I've gotta go build some more things today. If you've read this far, thank you, I hope you enjoyed the "slideshow," have a wonderful day and until next time, cheers!

It Stands!

I got super excited yesterday afternoon and finished (for the most part) my guitar stand!

It still needs some finishing touches. For example, the death prongs on the bottom DON'T need to be so...deadly in length. Either way, I'm happy with it so far. Most importantly, I learned a lot in the process.

Next up, sawhorses!

Of Late: A Picture Journal

Since the summer ended, things have been oddly dead but still alive around here. There's a different energy surrounding this place. I'm not sure if it's just because this is always what happens around "winter" here or if it's just because I had gotten so used to the people we had here during my course, but it's been yet another adjustment that I've been adapting to. I guess it's true that the only thing constant is change.

The weather hasn't been as cooperative as it was in the summer, and additionally our building coordinator took a much deserved vacation, so things on the house have stayed mostly the same until the past two days. I've been keeping myself busy with "extracurriculars" in the mean time.

Some friends and I decided to take a trip to the Rogue Brewery, and while it was mostly a disappointment, we DID leave with a souvenir: caricatures of each other drawn by each other. Guess which one I am:

Later that same day, we went to the beach on what just so happened to be the last day of Summer. Kind of fitting to watch the sun set on the "sunset" of the season. Really beautiful, as well:

I was feeling a little restless and really wanted to get my hands moving on SOMEthing building-related, so one afternoon I spent about an hour starting a guitar stand. It needs some work, but so far, this is what I have:

We harvested and hulled almonds one beautiful morning. They're still drying and I'm not sure what we're going to do with these yet, but I'd really like to make some milk or butter:

We also harvested a shit ton of apples. What to do with them? Make booze of course! Here's about 6 gallons of hand-pressed cider and the left over apple mash that we then used to make cookies and cakes:

As I said, the weather has been uncooperative of late, but it has created some cool scenes, like these views of steam rising off the roofs after a quick shower:

I went to a restaurant with a couple of my friends the other day, and I was appalled to see this in the bathroom. I can't believe these still exist. I've shit in a bucket and laid a floor made of horse manure in the last few weeks, but I draw the line at rotating cloth towel thingys. I refused to use it, and wiped my hands on my pants instead:

We sang some karaoke one night, and while looking for songs, I saw two very bizarre artist names, (Eye Blind, Third and Loaf, Meat) and there were many more. Seriously, who would ever alphabetize like this?

We've got deer! Reminds me of driving around back in PA:

We also have a storm trooper wielding a match while riding a bottle of St. John's Wort. Beat that!

A beautiful afternoon in the forest:

I find something strangely satisfying about splitting firewood. I also really enjoy how my arms look afterward. I didn't take a pic of the latter. Sorry ladies. ;)

The first Flyers game of the season was last Wednesday. True fans always find a way to watch their team:

I've always enjoyed taking walks in early spring and early fall. The temperature is usually at that perfect state where you want to walk briskly to keep yourself warm but you don't end up sweating your face off as a result. So relaxing:

We happened to have an absolutely gorgeous day on Saturday, so some friends and I decided to take one more trip to the beach. The water was too tepid even for my taste, but it was still a beautiful place to be, nonetheless. It might not be the last time I venture there this year, if I can help it:

We had some builders return this weekend, so we spent Tuesday and Wednesday finishing the sheeting on the back roof of our project house and filling in the insulation on the remaining walls. It definitely feels more like a home now, and I'm kind of sad that I won't be able to dwell in this place that has so much of my (and our building crew's) blood, sweat and love in it. Anyway, looks beautiful, right?

The next step(s) are plaster and windows, among the many other small things that need to happen to make the place "complete." We'll be doing some of it, maybe not all of it, but either way, I'll have more to come from here as always.

Today, we began working on independent projects. I still haven't decided exactly what mine is going to be, but I know I'm going to be doing woodwork.

Have a wonderful day, and until next time, cheers!