Warmer....warmer...

I know, yet again a non bus blog post. But this is helping me get closer to the end game. I am now fully wired for heat,equipment, and ventilation. Storage is painfully close to being set up. I can feel it, we are close.
This week Michelle is in Hawaii so I plan to take full advantage of any down time and try to get stuff done, so that the gym can function as a gym and the shop will finally function as a shop!

I have finally finished the boxes for the drawers, I stll have to put a finished front on them




















And then of course I have some pretty fancy high brow hardware planned for the drawer pulls...

Most importantly I had to make sure my measurements were correct so that the valuable contents of the drawers are going to fit properly.

A place for everything

For years I have been coveting the love seat at my friends place. It is from Ekornes and the love seat and couches recline!! So the other day Leslie emails me to let me know there is a couch and love seat at an estate sale.....Michelle was away in New York.....so I had to make an executive decision...
And I think I have just the place to put it!

Thankfully I had cheap teenager labor....

For the cost of some kraft dinner and smokies I had personal movers

And product testers...

Which then gave me time to continue to work on the shop. Custom storage is the next on the list.

You can never have to much storage....I have a lot of stuff to organize and store!

Clever

My buddy, to whom I am in a scotch club with, sent me this picture and I giggled like I was in high school. I love how cleaver this is. Simple, straight forward, but oh so clever.

17 years ago when we built our house, my builder put in an exhaust system into what was then my work shop-now formally known as the gym. I always looked at it and thought, that is so cleaver. Again, nothing super fancy when you look at the separate pieces, but when everything is put together it makes me smile and think...."huh!...clever!"

Years later the fan motor that was installed was giving me issues, so I bought a new one, only to find out the issue was a power supply issue not a motor issue. In the end with a replacement of a  $12 switch instead of the more pricey fan motor I was left with an extra in line fan......not so clever.....or wasn't it?

Yes now that I have the new shop, I finally have a place for the proper use of the inline fan! I quick install of the exhaust vent.

And a lovely hour or two, puttering in the shop (with the dogs)

 I had to figure out mounting brackets for the duct work....good old black pipe fittings! Clever...or so I thought!

As Michelle and Anna are away for a girls weekend, Jeff and I are left to bach it. So I picked him up from school, and made our way to a place called Speeders. I must say it was a blast. We have taken the kids go karting a number of times over the years and the usual reaction is "yawn". But this place has electric carts and wow...I was actually a little scared here and there. I was impressed....unlike Jeff who was NOT impressed when I put the cowboy hat on him in the store and took his picture.

Electrifying

I can see the light at the end of the tunnel,but that's just the light coming through the windows of the workshop. Now I want light in the workshop. Until now it has been powered by running extension cables from the garage.... but that is only a temporary stop gap measure. It's time to do it right.
Before Ron and I and Jeff insulated we ran most of the electrical wires. Most...it's kinda like close....which works with horse shoes and hand grenades but not wiring.

One of my issues was heat, I wanted something powerful enough to keep the -20's at bay, but not to obtrusive...and something that wouldn't be blocked by moving machinery...like how table saws and band saws would affect baseboard heaters.


So I parted the roof and ran a few lines through the ceiling joists. I mean if I'm running one I might as well make my wish list complete.
Rob, my very patient friend, came out a second time to help me complete the hook ups.I say the second time....the first time ended in blood, glue and Rob flirting with the nurses at urgent care....but that's only a story for him to tell. I figured, I'm good at pulling copper but would rather have a pro make sure the connections are correct.

And alas, we have heat. A wonderful 240V 30Amp heater from Cadet called "The hot One". Now I can putter in warmth and style!

Of course that's when I'm not cheering on the sidelines

Or getting my little girl(Who turned 17 today!YIKES!) to her ballet class

The panel is complete, 240 service to a welder plug, heater, dust collector, 110 v to numerous plugs, lights, outside circulation fan, inside vent fan RV plug in....I think I have thought of everything....or most things....likely some things! Hopefully enough things!

Now for a little house keeping, move the kayaks to a better storage location so my lovely and oh so patient wife can park in the garage! There are a plethora of things that you can buy on amazon and have shipped to your place of work on the Monday after a weekend of workshop puttering. But be mindful, quality of all pieces are not what you sometimes would expect. After sheering the third screw nail that came with the low cost kayak hangers...I decided to move onto some of my own stock.

Perfect! all neat and tidy!

Thankful...

Perspective. Sometimes we loose it, other times we gain it. But we all must have it and keep it in mind. As I sit and blog, I am always shocked at how time seems to have slipped away and I have small pangs of guilt for not getting more done on Fillmore. But then I take a minute and evaluate my time. Do I feel like I have wasted away days on end, doing something that I don't enjoy, or doesn't make me a better person? Then the age old, things could be worse. With the recent news of the passing of one of Canada's musical sons, someone who is woven into the fabric of a whole generations definition of who we are, Mr. Gord Downie from the Tragically Hip. I stop and think, so what if I haven't gotten as much done as I want.But I am so lucky to be able to see the beauty of life each day. So I celebrate. I celebrate the privilege of time, and loved ones to spend it with.

I celebrate watching the sunrise over a southern Manitoba wheat field...

I celebrate hitting clay pigeons when we cant seem to hit the geese

I celebrate time with family...

And time with friends...

And in between all the fun. I do get to have fun in "The Dog House"

Work progresses, I now have heat and power

Windows and works space. Who knows soon enough I'll have enough done in here that I can actually work on Fillmore who patiently waits for me just a few feet away.