BABY-BARN REBORN

Baby-Barn Arrival

          The baby-barn I purchased from Bill Leeman arrived a short time ago, which was very exciting.  Because of the recent mild weather (I really was hoping that spring was just around the corner) and the road leading from the Leeman's to our place was so bare, I was almost beginning to wonder if the building would arrive this winter.  However, after Bill and his son Brendan, finished spiking the building to a couple of thick logs, they hired Lynwood Lawrence to hook onto it with his back-hoe and had him skid it down to our property, which is about a half-mile away.  I'm planning on ripping out the studio I built in the garage when we first arrived from BC and will be using the materials to finish off the interior of the baby-barn.  Although the baby-barn looks quite a bit larger than my studio, it is in actuality only slightly larger.  However, I intend to build a loft in the baby-barn, which will give me quite a lot more space, after I rip the existing one out.  Luckily, since I'm not that tall, I'm going to lower the ceiling about a foot and a half, which will allow me to have standing room in the centre of the loft.  Since I'm going to put the computers upstairs and I'll be sitting down at them, I should be able to make better use of the baby-barn space.  I don't know why, at this age, that I keep looking for more projects to do, especially since I really ache these days and am not as energetic as I once was, but I do.   I believe it's a good idea to keep myself physically active and give myself something to look forward to in the future, even if it requires some hard labour.  

Baby-Barn In Place

          The plan is to give the exterior of the baby-barn the same appearance as the garage, even paint it barn red with white trim.  At the moment, the building is on quite a slant due to the sloping snow.  Since the area where the baby-barn is sitting was quite level in the summer, I'm hoping that when everything thaws, it  will be a lot more level than it is now and I won't have to do a lot of shimming.  At the moment, there is a ladder leading up to the loft, which I'm planning on replacing with an actual stair case.  Climbing up and down a ladder, especially carrying something on a somewhat regular basis can be a little dodgy - the last thing I need is to topple down onto the floor - I definitely don't bounce like the way I used to - could start breaking bones.  

          A friend of mine gave me a window shaped like an octagon, which I'm planning to insert in the top centre of the building and paint our golden unicorn on it, hopefully, giving the logo the appearance of stained glass.  I'm not sure if the image suits the window and if it doesn't, I'll just have to create something else to paint on the glass.  I'm also going to build a small canopy over the door to keep it dry in the winter.  Of course I'll be building some more windows for the studio as well so there will be plenty of  natural light.  Dang, just writing about what that building needs and seeing it in my mind's eye is starting to get me excited - can hardly wait to begin the necessary carpentry to finish off the place - really looking forward to working inside it next winter and there's actually a terrific view from the backside, where I plan to perhaps build a small outside balcony leading from the loft - have to see how ambitious I am by then - could be pooped out!

Untitled

          Since hurting my back last weekend hauling wheelbarrows full of manure down to the garden area, I've been painting a fair amount (5 paintings last week) a sort of moonscape series, which are smaller in size and a lot less intricate than I had been painting before.  The size of the painting depicting the stag standing on the narrow rocky outcropping is 15.5"x24" and is painted with acrylics on a .25" thick board.  I would be interested in hearing from anyone who reads this blog if they know a good title for the painting, which I could use.  Also, this painting is For Sale - $125.00, plus shipping or could be picked up at the Woodstock Farmer's Market on a Friday morning when we go there to sell Sarah's baking goods - let me know if you are interested in purchasing this painting or having something similar painted - all I need is a good, clear photo and a size to work from.  I probably should have painted something yesterday as well, since I'm in this painting mood, but thought I'd be down right lazy instead - just sort of relax - besides it was Sunday - except for the farmy chores that needed tending everyday, I didn't do diddly-squat - cheers, eh!