Wrapping it up.

by the Artist

It's a short week for our crew. Christmas. The Carpenter made plans last weekend to "wrap-up" the Bridge St project. All he needed was good weather and a healthy crew. It looked doable. It wasn't. Illness, rain and wet snow made a short week even shorter. But he knows how to be flexible. He and the crew pulled all the equipment not being used from the project and brought it over to the next project. Then he sent the guys home to start their Christmas celebrations.

We will finish up the garage gable craftsman architectural beam detail (which they are building custom) and a few odds and ends, between Christmas and New Year's. Despite the warm, wet fall this project is coming in on schedule. Very thankful for that. 

I've been busy keeping the "home fires" going and preparing to host Christmas Day for 23 family members coming to Applewood headquarters! We're having Italian fare (what else for a bunch of Swedes and Norwegians?) Yes... this New Jersey girl likes to shake it up a bit! 

We're looking forward to sharing our little home for Christmas. And these days I don't even mind that it isn't a big home. The more programs I watch about living in "Tiny houses" the more I appreciate my "small house". Why would I need more? It is enough. I don't even worry anymore about accomadating 25 of us in two days. It is what it is. It's more about spending time together and remembering why we are celebrating at all.

From our home to yours.... may you have a blessed Christmas with your family and friends.

See you in the new year!
 

Around the table.

the Artist

A recent quiet Friday eve the Carpenter and I stopped to visit the Carpenter's parents at their home. We sat down at their table and enjoyed a cup of coffee and some treats. It was just the four of us. We ended up sitting there for over two hours chatting about a number of things. Reminiscing about the past, laughing about silly things and sharing our life happenings.

I realized that for 38 years I had sat at that very same table many times, more times then I can count. From the time I was a young girl dating their son, and then a very shy young bride. I lived so far (and still do) from my family and the Carpenter's family became my family. 

So much has happened since those days, so much has been shared, so much life lived. So much laughter and love. It is a comforting place to be. I can sit down and forget about the worries of life for that short time. 

The people sitting around that table have changed. We've all gotten older, the kids have grown up, and now are marrying and will bring new life to the table.

And for most of those 38 years a cell phone was not seen. We looked each other in the eye. We were and are present with each other. The Carpenter and I are hosting Christmas this year at our home. I'm tempted to put a cell phone basket by the door (which will make me not a very popular Auntie), so that everyone can be present with loved ones for just a few hours. After all… nothing stays the same. We only have this moment for sure. So we should make the most of it right? Be present. Be interested. Appreciate. Love. 

So tomorrow when you gather around a table for Thanksgiving.. wherever you are… look around you and take it all in. Be present. And be thankful for the home you have been invited to and the table you will share. 

by the Carpenter

The good, the bad, and the ugly. Ok, Ok, I know you have missed me! Have not been around again for over two months. The Artist has once again threatened things if I don’t write. Its not that I don’t want to write, it’s just been a good, bad and ugly stretch of time.

The good has been like this:
In April, work started coming in and it has not stopped. If you read this blog, you remember the oak tree project. That was in between regular work. In between regular work was all the meetings and bidding. Well it has not stopped since.

The good:  
Fun jobs, interesting customers, lots of referrals.

The good:
Unexpected jobs coming in between the expected jobs.

The good:
Had our usual week at the lake.

The good:
It won't be long before we will be scheduled up to Christmas.

The good:
We sold our boat.

And we have some bad (well maybe just not so good):
Still looking for help. We are in need of at least one experienced remodeler, maybe two.

The bad (not so good):
Not many guys out there looking for work, good for them, bad for those who need them.

The Bad (not so good):
The snack manager blew out her ACL the second day of vacation. She spent a cool week in the air-conditioned camper. Me, I spent the week lifting that 60 pound load up and down the camper steps.

The bad (not so good):
We sold our boat (it was a sad day, but good now).

The bad (not so good):
Schedules are getting harder and harder to keep. Had a sub get injured, and another not able to give the time in September we were hoping for.

And the ugly:
As you know, again if you have been reading here. The business over the years has taken a toll on a certain carpenter. The shoulders have been getting progressively worse and I think this coming winter will be the time we make the change for me to transition from carpenter to full time manager. I shouldn’t say it’s the ugly. It should be a good thing if it gives me the time to heal and turn over responsibilities to others on the crew. Its only ugly when it hurts.

I can say the good really out weighs the bad and the ugly. It’s always worth it to see the glass as always half full, not half empty. We always find a way to figure things out. Customers for the most part understand the scheduling challenges we can run into and employees and subs know when its time to kick things in high gear, and go the extra mile or two to get the job done.

So, forget about the bad and the ugly, its all good!