June 25 - Well Update on a Slow Newsday

A Leftover Item from Yesterday and a Week Ago -
It was brought to my attention yesterday that the well, when it was drilled, encountered a significant vein of underground dihydrogenmonoxide, which is now permeating the plumbing system. This situation remains even after the full day of purging the well of sand, frogs and other undesirable materials. I was able to confirm this finding with a graduate chemical engineer. The engineer informed me that this compound, when allowed to infiltrate into the human respiratory system can cause coughing, choking and breathing difficulties. He explained that as little as two tablespoons penetrating into the lungs can be fatal. He further explained that this chemical, when heated, turns vaporous and can then cause severe injury to exposed skin. We have reason to be cautious.

In this age of EPA, FDA, OSHA and all manner of other regulatory work relating to medical, food and environmental safety, I am surprised by the dearth of  applicable regulations. Without being able to rely on the government for specific guidance on this matter, it seems like the best we can do is keep our eyes on it and see how it flushes out.

June 24 - Summer in Nowthen

A Rainy and Sunny Summer Day -

Bright sunshine alternated with brief showers on a pleasant summer day at the church. 

Farmer Paul was out preparing the back forty for grass seed. Two evenings this week were devoted to picking rocks and a substantial pile was accumulated. I heard that today would be seeding day but Paul said a little more dirt work is required on the near side of the drainage puddle before the seed goes in. So, if not today, one day soon the seed will be sown and the green grass will sprout where dirt now reigns. 

Mrs. Chronicler prepared the Saturday lunch, marginally assisted by her husband. Here we see the work crew enjoying the lunch break on the back porch. The patio furniture is a tad limited. A few folding chairs, a prototype pew and an improvised Adirondack chair that Bill is using. 

Sloppy Joe's and watermelon - just like a picnic in the park.  

Straggler Bees - 

Last Saturday a swarm of bees encamped behind the building on some siding boards. A local beekeeper happily came to remove them from the church, where they are not really welcome, to his hives. I am sure both the beekeeper and the bees are better served. I am sure their usefulness at the church would have been limited. Perhaps of some value to illustrate a sermon text or two, but for most of the year they would just be a nuisance. The photo shows those bees that missed the ride to the new location. They are still hanging on to the boards, lost and without the necessary female around to keep them content and usefully employed. I am surprised to see them still hanging out a week later, but that just shows that I really don't know anything about bees. 

Hanging Drywall - 

The major, continuing task for the forseeable future is hanging drywall. Acres of drywall need to be hung, one panel at a time. Each panel is secured by a few hundred screws, meaning that a near infinite number of screws must be drilled in. Here Bob, resorted to the portable scaffold when his arms proved to be too short, even while standing on tip-toes.

Aare and Ami seemed to be enjoying their task. They were working in the soon-to-be restrooms. As they worked, Aare was singing a bright song about an aching heart, the very core of longing, perhaps recalling days gone by. I overheard something about the kernel of the yearn-al.

Ed the Insulator -

Ed and Bill are shown here adding sound proofing to the firewall. It looks like insulation to me. I commented to Ed that I think he is a better insulator than conductor. He replied that I have never seen him in the role of a conductor so I can not draw a well informed conclusion. He is right. It did remind me of a story I once heard about an orchestra leader that was convicted of murder and sentenced to death in the electric chair. However, the execution failed since he was such a poor conductor. I cannot vouch for the truth of the story but Ed did bring it to mind.

Another new thing is the installation of door frames. This one is in the firewall. Bob said we should take note since it is a very expensive item. So, be sure to look it over and maybe even give it a compliment or two.

 Finally, a look at the sanctuary as it exists today. Drywall is hanging on the outside walls, but still missing from the room up front. The trim boards all stacked up waiting to be planed and cut to size. Under the shroud in the center of the picture are the posts that will proudly stand on the pyramidal bases and keep the portico roof from falling to the ground.

June 17 - Saturday Update

New and Exciting Developments -
The well has been hooked up and the church now has its very own water supply. No more need to connect extreme hose lengths or haul bucket loads from neighbor Pete's.

After the well is connected it is necessary to let the water run for a while to clean out sand and other undesirable materials like frogs from the well. Here we see the water refilling the drainage basin.

Matt was able to draw water for cleaning up his tools, without needing to import it. He seemed pleased with this situation.




















A Mid-June Portrait -

The view from the road. The paint color and pattern just right of the entryway reflects the recommendation of the design committee. The entryway does not.

The Worker Bees Swarm to the Job -
The trim boards behind the church proved to be an attractive landing spot for a passing swarm of bees. Sam, who earlier had demonstrated ample insight into sand hill cranes, today showed his apiarian knowledge. Sam knows his birds and bees. He explained that the worker bees swarm when they lose the whereabouts of the queen. I think all the worker bees are male and therefore refused to stop and ask directions. Instead, they just fly about willy-nilly, hoping by some stroke of luck to stumble on the queen. When one or two decide to land on the trim pieces, all the rest follow, packing in tighter than the average pre-school Sunday school class.

Ken figured if the volunteer workers showed up in these numbers the church would be finished in no time at all.

A local beekeeper was located, and he came to round up the bees and herd them home. His theory is that this is a spin-off colony that was looking for a new location. They just stopped in at this rest area to recharge a bit. The beekeeper likely has experience and science on his side but I like Sam's story better.

The beekeeper put a box under the critter collection then lifted and dropped the boards. The queen dropped into the box and all the other bees dove in after her. He estimated that 40 or 50 bees probably did not get into the box. He left and the straggler bees were left to survive by their own wits, which means they will most likely die. 


Post Script to Yesterday - 
Someone reported that they saw two Rebeccas and two Petes in the meeting picture posted yesterday. I can attest that there was only one of each at the meeting. I recommend that anyone suffering double vision should get their eyes checked.

June 16 - Porch, Pillars and Meeting

Back to June 9 -
Through the wonders of electronics, we have the ability to turn back time. Even though the porch slab has already been poured, we are able to step back to look at events preceding the pour, back to Friday, June 9. Return with us now to that thrilling day of yesterweek, to see the preparation for the pour.

Bob (notice the return of the yellow hat after a winter-long absence), pounds in a stake for supporting the slab form and at the same time teaches Felix about trust.

Sam drives in a stake using an even bigger hammer, relying on mother earth to hold the stake in place while being sunk.

Loren, Wayne and Jacob sharpen up their fencing skills. At the same time they are laying in reinforcement for smaller pads, like the one that will hold the air conditioning units.

Wayne, Tim and Bob add color as well as useful work to the evening.

It takes two Sams to level the form.

Troy and Sam carefully measure the form to assure the proper height. My dad used to tell me that two heads are better than one, even if one of them is a cabbage.

With all the components measured, leveled and with the rebar tied and propped up, the slab is ready to be poured.

Unveiling the Pillars - 
With the speed of electricity, we leap ahead to Monday, having previously reported on the big concrete pour of Saturday.
Sonny returns to inspect the pillars and to apply the finish coat which makes the rather coarse concrete a beautiful, decorative work of art.
The forms were made with a cross on the inside which left the impression on the concrete pillar. There was some concern that the impression may be damaged when the forms were removed. Sonny looks on with keen interest while Sam pries off the wooden form.

The forms came off slick as grease without any damage to the impression. Sam lets out a sigh of relief while Sonny talks on the phone.

First any residual oil must be removed so the finish coat sticks to the concrete. The oil allowed the form to come off without sticking. Now with the form off, we want the finish coat to stick tight to the concrete.

The artist mixes up his magic coating. It looks like sour cream is an important ingredient in the compound.

Painstakingly, the sauce is troweled over the pillar, filling the voids and providing a uniform finish. Sonny estimates the thickness of the finished coat to be about 1/128th of an inch.

Sam was eventually allowed to use a small knife to trim the grooves that make up the cross.

The finished pillar with a decorative cross on each face.













Congregation Update Meeting -









Wednesday evening, in lieu of Bible class, the congregation met inside the new church to get a thorough update on the building project.

Don Keskey presented the agenda and the financial report. I understood the agenda.

Bob, without the yellow hat, went over a list of tasks remaining. He assured the congregation that there is still work to be done.

Janelle reviewed the work of the design committee. Among the many tasks for the committee is recommending the exterior colors and pattern for the building. The congregation agreed that color on the outside would be good.

June 10 - From Pillars to Porch

A Day of Concrete Progress - 


Two professional concrete guys from neighboring congregations were here to provide expertise and professional skill for the project. We are grateful to Sonny Johnson of the Minneapolis congregation and Jon Parks of the Cokato congregation who provided much appreciated energy and skill on this hot, windy Saturday.

The very visible, decorative pyramid-shaped pillars that support the portico was the object of Sonny's attention. Earlier in the week Sam was visiting with Sonny on the phone, picking the expert's brain for tips on assuring a professional look to the pillars. After considerable time spent explaining, Sonny finally said, "Tell you what. I will come to the church Saturday morning." Sam did not protest and Sonny came.



Jon Parks has spent his entire working life in the concrete business. He poured his talents and energy into guiding the back porch floor.
Thanks to both of these brothers for their expertise and diligent efforts. Concrete work is heavy labor.

The ready-mix truck was a little behind schedule so Sonny had a chance to entertain the assembly with stories. Here he is holding court from his pickup bed.









Then the truck is sighted. Let the fun begin.

Concrete pours are exciting. The trucks rumble in, the mud slides down the chute and bodies scramble hither and thither to either move the mix where it needs to go or get out of the way.
The truck arrives on the scene and the workers are ready and waiting.

Sam oiled the inside of the forms for the pillars. This will release the form when it is time to remove it. Just like greasing a cake pan, I think. I hope it works.

Sam holds the rebar frame in place, the mud avalanches down the chute and Brent uses his long ago developed butter churning skills to ram the poker through the thick ooze, encouraging it to fill each nook in the form.

Bob crawls around tapping on the form with a mallet, further inspiring the mud to get into the proper spaces. The expression on Brent's face reflects the ease with which the wooden prod glides up and down, in and out of the gravel, cement and water mix.

After the concrete has set up sufficiently, Sonny and Sam carefully remove the mold from the topmost piece of the structure.

Sonny then uses a mix of portland cement and fine sand to stir up a thin batter that is applied to the exposed side walls. Watching Sonny's dexterity with the small hand trowel makes me certain that he could have succeeded well icing cakes.



Out Behind the Building - 

When the mud starts to flow, many hands and feet are needed to quickly get the mud wither it needs to go. Mark is guiding the chute and flashing hand signals to the truck driver. Sam, Brian and Eric rake the mix into place. After the first section is smoothed out, the operation shifts down one more section.

Pouring a slab the size of the back porch requires significant planning and careful setup.
The far end of the floor is already in place and is at the proper height. The pipe in the foreground is resting on wooden stakes that were planted the night before such that, when the pipe is placed on them, the top of the pipe is at the top-of-floor height. Those wooden stakes have a couple of nails driven in on an angle to keep the pipe in place. Jon, on the far end of the long 2x4 screed, works with Brent to level the concrete at the proper elevation. Watching Jon makes me think that this line of work likely develops excellent core muscles and probably would be a good workout for ballet dancers and gymnasts. Sam and Brian push, pull and otherwise cajole the concrete in place so the screed operators have enough mud to get to height but not so much that they cannot move the screed efficiently. The concrete mix is heavy and does not go running into place without a lot of muscle.

While the chaos whirls around him, Sam the multi-tasker adds a phone call to his immediate attention. This time he actually took the luxury of using one hand to hold the phone rather than just leave it poised on his shoulder while he shoveled concrete.

Tall Sam uses a hammer to intimidate the concrete. A former workmate of mine used the phrase 'pounding sand' to describe effort expended on unprofitable activities. This experience came to mind as I watched Sam flail away at the mud. Actually, he is making the wooden pipe support stakes disappear, driving them nearer China.



Fighting the Wind -




Saturday was windy. Very windy.
Leaves, dust and assorted debris blew into the porch even as the concrete was being poured.

Jon not only oversaw the pouring operation, he also headed up the cleanup, scraping the junk off as carefully as possible, then smoothing the mud again.

Bob tried fighting wind with wind. Jon is doing some final troweling, not being forced to kneel facing the corner as punishment for bad behavior.












Meanwhile on the Inside -

Kevin installed insulation. Some of it he had the opportunity to install several times as the insulation did not want to adhere to the glue he had applied. He persevered, however, and eventually the insulation behaved properly and stayed in place.

Levi and Mark were among the insiders who also applied insulation.

Friday evening Glenn was insulating water pipes - the hot water lines to keep the water hot and the cold water lines to keep them from sweating in humid weather.




















Before Logging Off - 

The evaluation of pew concepts continues. Another possibility is being considered.