Getting Started
Getting Started
Work started on the footings for the barn on June 22nd. A meditator with years of experience working with concrete headed up a small group of volunteers and the project began under cloudy, mild conditions.
Day 1
The group met on the property at 10 am and unloaded the materials and set up the tools and got the newly purchased generator running. While the barn footings were laid out and assembled, an estimate was drawn up and an order placed for the rebar needed for the footings and the uprights into the walls pony walls. The rebar was picked up in the afternoon along with a site level and some treats (nanaimo bars from the garage) and we broke for lunch around 1pm.
While two teams worked on leveling and then skirting the footings, the job of laying out and tying the rebar began. The work finished for the evening around 7 pm and a late dinner was finished at almost 9pm, followed up by a group meditation.
We had several volunteers staying on the property in vans and a one using the rental property across the highway. One volunteer headed home after an extremely long but productive day.
Day 2
After the morning meditation, work continued on the skirting, tying rebar and back filling with some incredibly hard soil. With four volunteers now on site, we teamed up and gradually improved our ability rebar tying “chops”. The weather gradually took a turn for the worse, and we had some serious rain fall over the evening. Given the cool wet weather, we decided to use the main house at Greg’s for the evening meditation.
Day 3
Given the incredibly stormy evening, the group was invited to Greg’s for the morning meditation and breakfast. After looking at the weather and tracking the forecast, we decided to finish off the barn and then return the following week under sunny skies to tackle the footings for the house. Of course, as the day wore on the weather did clear up some and by the end of the day the corners of the footings had been built and set in place for the house and the barn footings were close to completion.
For a group that was tackling a project most had little experience with, the job was done quickly, methodically and without too much difficulty. Having an experienced hand leading the job made a huge difference, and we felt lucky to have such a skilled “foreman” on the job. Everyone put in long hours, but it was pleasure to spend the time in such company.
