A week ago last Saturday, I drove down to nearby Kearney, Ontario to attend my first dogsled race. Our builder is one of the coordinators of the race, an annual event in Kearney, and I thought I’d show my support. This is in fact an international race, and, to my surprise, there is actually a Jamaican dog sled team. I laughed when I heard about the Olympic bobsled team, and now I find they have a dogsled racing team. Training must be a challenge. What’s next, curling? The promoters of the race put out a little magazine with information about the race, and one of the sponsor ads had a photo of Husky, muzzle up, and baying. The caption read: “Don’t worry, be yappy!”
I arrived in Kearney on Saturday afternoon, just in time for the 4km purebred race. As I walked up to the community center, command central, it became apparent that this dogsled race was no small event. There were lots of people, kennel trucks parked everywhere, the omnipresent sound of dogs yapping, and mushers were busy hitching their teams to sleds for the upcoming race. Our general contractor, Wayne Thornton greeted me, showed me around the grounds, and then walked me as far as the starting line so I could get a clear view of the teams as they took off. Teams were staggered in two minute intervals, and I was able to stand several yards away from the mushers as they raced by. As the course essentially began and ended at the same narrow starting line, there were some close calls as mushers heading out had to be alert to the avoid collisions with the mushers heading in. Steering a team of dogs is a bit more complicated than steering a car, and much of that is achieved through verbal commands. In addition to the dogsled races, there were other events as well. Out on a nearby lake, the local fire department demonstrated the rescue procedure for a victim who had fallen through the ice. There was a wood carver shaping a bear with a chain saw out of a cedar log (our bears are nicer!). There was live music, plenty of food and drink, and I was able to indulge in MY favorite pastime: people watching. Mushers are a colorful bunch and I had a great time. I’d like to attend the Kearney dogsled races next year as well, hopefully with Shauna in tow.
Work on the house seems to be progressing well, despite the horrendous weather conditions. The last section of the roof deck was laid last Friday, shortly after the insulators finished blowing spray foam in between the 10 inch structural JSI’s which separate our ceiling from our roof deck. We hope that this week, weather-permitting, the roofers will finish installing the steel roof. As of this writing, the wind is blowing strong, and the roads are glare ice. Our lighting designer, James Solecki, was on site all last week as well, drilling holes and installing pot light cans for the 200+ pot lights which will in large part light our home. Because dark wood stain apparently eats light, and our house is stained dark, proper lighting is essential. I have respect for people who can properly light a challenging space; it’s harder than it may look. As I have said all along, a custom design is difficult to picture in two dimensions. Many of our decisions have necessarily been made on the fly as the house is built. Even with the aid of three dimensional design software, which our builder has thankfully provided, and which has been extremely helpful in modifying our floor plan before construction, it is hard to really visualize the space until the logs are up. So far, I am not disappointed, and that is due, in large part, to Shauna’s perseverance. I burned out long ago, and my job at present is to ensure that she doesn’t end up in a padded cell, mumbling gibberish about pedestal sinks.
We’re in the home stretch now, and that is when things begin to get really crazy. Plumbing fixtures are the latest investigation which continues to confound us. There are simply too many choices for everything. Internet companies like Fixture Warehouse, and Faucets.com offer thousands of options for everything form showers to kitchen faucets. I used to laugh at those haughty designers on HGTV, throwing hissy fits about incompatible bathroom fixtures, and now we find ourselves immersed in this bizarre trivia. Rockstar Obama is building momentum, some mentally ill gunman killed five students at Northern Illinois University, there was an explosion killing eighty victims in Afghanistan, Vlad Putin wants to restart the Cold War … meanwhile, Shauna and I are embroiled in a much more serious debate: traditional vs. modern for the bathroom faucets? Written by Jamie Oppenheimer c2008 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
I arrived in Kearney on Saturday afternoon, just in time for the 4km purebred race. As I walked up to the community center, command central, it became apparent that this dogsled race was no small event. There were lots of people, kennel trucks parked everywhere, the omnipresent sound of dogs yapping, and mushers were busy hitching their teams to sleds for the upcoming race. Our general contractor, Wayne Thornton greeted me, showed me around the grounds, and then walked me as far as the starting line so I could get a clear view of the teams as they took off. Teams were staggered in two minute intervals, and I was able to stand several yards away from the mushers as they raced by. As the course essentially began and ended at the same narrow starting line, there were some close calls as mushers heading out had to be alert to the avoid collisions with the mushers heading in. Steering a team of dogs is a bit more complicated than steering a car, and much of that is achieved through verbal commands. In addition to the dogsled races, there were other events as well. Out on a nearby lake, the local fire department demonstrated the rescue procedure for a victim who had fallen through the ice. There was a wood carver shaping a bear with a chain saw out of a cedar log (our bears are nicer!). There was live music, plenty of food and drink, and I was able to indulge in MY favorite pastime: people watching. Mushers are a colorful bunch and I had a great time. I’d like to attend the Kearney dogsled races next year as well, hopefully with Shauna in tow.
Work on the house seems to be progressing well, despite the horrendous weather conditions. The last section of the roof deck was laid last Friday, shortly after the insulators finished blowing spray foam in between the 10 inch structural JSI’s which separate our ceiling from our roof deck. We hope that this week, weather-permitting, the roofers will finish installing the steel roof. As of this writing, the wind is blowing strong, and the roads are glare ice. Our lighting designer, James Solecki, was on site all last week as well, drilling holes and installing pot light cans for the 200+ pot lights which will in large part light our home. Because dark wood stain apparently eats light, and our house is stained dark, proper lighting is essential. I have respect for people who can properly light a challenging space; it’s harder than it may look. As I have said all along, a custom design is difficult to picture in two dimensions. Many of our decisions have necessarily been made on the fly as the house is built. Even with the aid of three dimensional design software, which our builder has thankfully provided, and which has been extremely helpful in modifying our floor plan before construction, it is hard to really visualize the space until the logs are up. So far, I am not disappointed, and that is due, in large part, to Shauna’s perseverance. I burned out long ago, and my job at present is to ensure that she doesn’t end up in a padded cell, mumbling gibberish about pedestal sinks.
We’re in the home stretch now, and that is when things begin to get really crazy. Plumbing fixtures are the latest investigation which continues to confound us. There are simply too many choices for everything. Internet companies like Fixture Warehouse, and Faucets.com offer thousands of options for everything form showers to kitchen faucets. I used to laugh at those haughty designers on HGTV, throwing hissy fits about incompatible bathroom fixtures, and now we find ourselves immersed in this bizarre trivia. Rockstar Obama is building momentum, some mentally ill gunman killed five students at Northern Illinois University, there was an explosion killing eighty victims in Afghanistan, Vlad Putin wants to restart the Cold War … meanwhile, Shauna and I are embroiled in a much more serious debate: traditional vs. modern for the bathroom faucets? Written by Jamie Oppenheimer c2008 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
1 comment:
200 pot lights?! Climate change be damned! The Oppenheimers are competing with the sun. :)
Mush, Jamie...MUSH!
Post a Comment