day . o9

today we tried to have a group meet at site early then another group come at regular time, but it didn't work out quite to plan. only a few of us showed up early. we finally got to finish the roof planks. i got to get up and help screw them down. there was a really neat view of the site from being up that high. once the roof was complete i went to help megan start the icf's. she explained all the things that we had to remember, like to stager the joints, and where the rebar goes. it was fairly simple, but very tedious. at the end of the day we got pretty far on the corner we were working on.

day . o8

after 2 days of rain we got to meet on site today. it was the first day that gtcc was there. some people pumped water but i got lucky and didnt have to. i think pumping water is going to be one of those "not it" jobs. we started out the day by cutting 2x12s that would go on the roof of the clubhouse, very similar to the floor boards. the only problem was that we had to measure and cut each one individually. it ended up taking the whole day and we ran out of screws so we couldnt finish, but we are so close to being done.

day . 07

it rained cats and dogs today, so we met at the gurp. which meant we got to finish the dust collection system that we started on day 2, which i was excited about. since we had worked on it for so long the first day we got right going on it today. it only took a little over 2 hours to get it totally finished and working. after it was finished and robert approved i moved on to help renee c finish the clamp rack. it took a couple of hours to finish getting everything screwed in and the braces attached. when that was done i helped clean up the shop and get a few small tasks done, like tagging tools, breaking down cardboard boxes, and my favorite, crushing cans for the recycling bin.

day . 06

it rained. a lot! well not really a lot, i am a whimp when it comes to rain. anywho. it was quite confusing as to where everyone was supposed to meet. at first on site, then the shop, then back to the site. but everyone got the message and we finished unloading the ICF's off the truck that gtcc started. and after many calls to robert we finally got a plan and moved them to the back of the site around the footings. they were so much heavier than i thought they would have been. and huge! it took 5 people to move one bundle. and there were 24 bundles. we had to put 2 2x4's through at about hip height, and squat down and put the 2x4 on our shoulder and press back up! needless to say i got a work out. once everyone got on the same page and working as a team it went very quickly. they all were moved in about an hour.

oh and the first one we moved i picked up my part and the stack tilted back and poured water all down my arm inside my jacket. it was lovely. ha.

cant wait for a warm shower!

day . 05

today was great! even though it was a monday, and i was feeling less than motivated when i arrived on site, it was a beautiful day and a lot was accomplished. caroline, megan, and i started right off helping adrian get the clubhouse all square and moved into the right place on the 6x6 supports. it took a little tweaking but alas it was square. after that our work group moved to measuring and cutting the boards for the floor. we got to put on our math hats to deduce how many would be needed to span the floor. i realized how long it had been since i had needed to use any real math for a real purpose. it was sad. i had to use the calculator on my phone. but we figured it out, we needed 10 full ones and robert had to rip a final one. after they were all cut i watched and did some latter holding while robert and adrian climbed on top of the structure to place the 16' 2x12's on the sides. it was quite intense. once they were down off the roof, we had to square the buidling again so we could cut the 1x4 strapping to go under the floor joists. once they were cut i attempted to roll under the floor to attach them, but the gravel footings were too tall and my drill too large, so that will have to wait for another day. we were finally able to attach all of the floor boards which went pretty quickly with 3 drills. it turned out fairly well and i think that everyone was pleased. i know that i was. the final task of the day was to lift the back wall into place that cody, josh, and candice worked on. the clubho[us]e is coming together!

ICF's come tomorrow....and 100% chance of rain! ahhhhh.

day . o4

tgif...its the first week of class and i am already counting down to fridays. thats bad. well today started less than fun. i woke up late and had to speed the 35 miles to site. no fun. i got there and volunteered to scoop the residual water from the holes that the pump could not pump...with a size medium jimmy johns cup. not a fun way to start the day. so after an hour of scooping then finally having our buckets stolen for gravel transport. robert got to the site with the pump again. so caroline, sarah, ashley, and i began to go and try to pump the rest of the water out of the foundation. some places that were deep enough were successful and others we not. it was hard to navigate around, the mud is like quicksand in places, and many times i sunk from the weight of the pump and could hardly free myself. after doing our best to pump out what was left we moved to help with the clubho[us]e assembly. for about half an hour i felt useless. it seemed while we were dealing with the water that everyone had a job to do, and i couldnt find a place to fit in. i finally helped sort 2x12's and then lift them onto the saw horses to be cut. after they were all cut and moved closer to the footings that had been made with gravel, a cement block, and 6x6's with instruction from robert we laid them out in their rectangles like they needed to be put together. caroline and i then marked all the plywood, with three lines, and a mark every foot, to be used as the walls of the structure. as robert explained the plywood would be the strength that held the repeating 2x12s in place and kept them from racking. after everything was marked and pre-drilled, the raising began. everyone assembled around and carried the structure to the footings. one by one, they were placed, and the plywood was attached. it took quite a bit of adjusting but 5 were placed and 4 plywood sheets were attached. the end result of the day was that right side was shifted about 1 1/4". which will have to wait to monday to be fixed. by then it was time to comb the site for tools and pack up for the day, not to mention it was getting cold and very windy. and from somewhere off in the distance the awful smell of propane drifted into the site.

i cant wait for monday to see the final product of the clubho[us]e. on paper it looks like an amazing structure, and once the wheat is planted on top it will be so neat. the repetition of the 2x12s on the outside of the structure is very interesting.

it is forcasted to rain tomorrow, i better not! i will not be happy.

day . o3

today was one of those discouraging days. i felt like nothing really got accomplished, but in reality we accomplished a lot! i got to site WAY early again today. like 20 mins early. i cant seem to get the timing right from point a to point b in greensboro quite yet. once everyone got there and we got our task list for the day and caroline, megan, and i began tackling the pile of 2x12s that needed to be "de-nailed", sorted, and re-stacked to be used tomorrow to build the clubho[us]e also know as the place to store tools and get out of the weather. it took a little while to get a system for hammering and then prying the nails out but once we did it went pretty smoothly. gabe was a lot of help for the stubborn nails that decided they would rather stay where they were. after about 2 hours michael, josh, and cody relieved us and i went to relieve denise from the pick-axe. hunched over feeling like my right arm might just fall off at the elbow, i pick-axed out the dried dirt from the footings, while renee c. came behind and blew out the rest of the debris. this was super important to get done so that when we set up the ICFs and the concrete is poured, they will bond to the footings. after the grooves were clear and the footings clean i helped move the power cord that was attached to the pump. i felt very un-useful for the rest of the time that people pumped water out of the foundation. we only had 4 shovels and they were all being used. i felt very uncomfortable standing around watching other people work and not having a task of my own to help with. the final task of the day was to throw the ice chunks, which were about an inch thick and various sizes, into the road, so when they melted we would not have to pump out the water again. when this was all done it was only a little past 4 so we got to leave a whole 2 hours early. robert was sure to warm us not to get used to it, or take advantage of it! i didnt, i met friends for coffee.

so even though the tasks that we had to complete today were tedious and felt not exactly design related, i know they were very important and needed to be done, and done well.

tomorrow we get to build the clubho[us]e. that should be fun. not to mention it only gets warmer by the day. today was a beautiful, i hope tomorrow is just as beautiful and warm.

day . o2

we met on site for the first time today to do some exploring. it was VERY cold and the interior was covered in a sheet of ice. we "ice skated" as we waited for robert and took lots of pictures. once robert got there we had a tour of the building. walking around made me realize how large it actually is. after everyone was frozen and poor lauren found where the plumbing line left the house with her leg, we caravaned out to the gurp [gateway university research park]. the space that was donated is amazing. adrian led us on a tour and told us about the "good" bathroom. it is so nice that we have our own place to work off site. i can only imagine how great it is going to be for auxiliary tasks. or days that is rains. after another tour we split up and started working. the group i was in put together the dust collection system and started connecting the band saw and belt sander to the system. it took a LOT longer than i anticipated, and was somewhat challenging. it was much like putting together a puzzle. we ended up running out of clamps and could go no further. after a few hours it was ready to test the side we finished....and it worked. very well at that.

today was a good start. it was nice to complete a task and it actually work, gave me a little confidence for the months to come, that i will be a help. again today i leave excited for the next day! i hope the excitement stays. i like it!

day . o1

today was the first day back after a long relaxing vacation and was for orienting......and it snowed! everyone was excited and nervous about the upcoming experience. robert discussed the ICF's. we watched the original [us] video. it was very moving, and sparked my excitement for the project. although the task of this project i know will be daunting at times, i am ready to dive in and give my all.

i must remember to copy my insurance card!! and get a hard hat...oh osha [: