Preparing for MAGIC, Day Two

Sunday in Camarillo.

Last night, sleep came easily after a full day.  I woke up at 6 a.m. this morning - okay, so on Dallas time that was actually sleeping in, but still - sorta dang early for a Sunday on vacation.    Laurie slept in a bit and then we lounged around (p.s. to my Dallas friends -- it was too COLD outside to have coffee on the patio... I know, I'm mean...) and then showered and got in the car  to Home Depot and Michael's for a last minute trip for Camp supplies.

I'm not sure that dear Laurie really understood the breadth of what she was taking on, offering her home to Ernie (f/k/a/ T-Homie) and I for the week.  Holy smokes.   We are completely out of control - it is WAY TOO FUN.  And after 4 trips to two different grocery stores inside of 24 hours, her kitchen is filled with all sorts of fabulous things...

Meanwhile, Ernie was texting us travel progress as she drove the 7 hours from her home to Camarillo.  A lot of good it did her - we weren't here when she arrived!  She pretended to be bitter, standing at the front door with her luggage, with nobody home.

And THEN the fun ensued.

We popped into a few other stores and then picked up Laurie's friend Jennifer and headed to Ojai.  We tried to go to Feast Bistro (owned by a carpenter journeyman friend of Laurie's - she is also coming to the Camp!) but it was unexpectedly closed.  Disappointed but undaunted, we skipped down two doors and found some comfortable chairs and some wine.  When we left, a fellow patron stopped us and asked us if we had grown up together. ??  Er, no.....?  She said that from our conversation it seemed like we all knew each other really well.  LOL  Ahhhh and so it begins.

Next we headed to The Farmer & the Cook - this amazing little organic cafe.  OMG.   We sat outside and solved world problems over spectacular food and really entertaining people watching.  My people.

Then we asked MAN IN PLAID SHIRT if he would take our photo on the way out.  But then... tragedy. 

ERNIE LOST HER HEAD IN OJAI

 But then she righted herself:

Honestly we were all laughing so hard in the car, that even with the windows rolled up we were turning heads.  I don't know how Laurie was able to drive home, laughing as hard as she was..

And on the ride home?  "Eric & Ernie" was born.  You'll just have to ask us about that.  But don't worry if you forget - you'll hear about us soon enough, I am certain....  We are going to be famous.

Tomorrow is the kick off of Camp.  We have to BE there at 7 a.m.  Eeek.  The wine bottle got corked a bit earlier tonight than last night.  Early to bed for all of us.  More tomorrow...!!!!

The Scramble

 It's a scramble here.  But thankfully I do my best work under a deadline...

 I've starting packing for my trip to LA for MAGIC Camp.  I fly Saturday.  Monday night I got my tool belt out and assessed all my hand tools. Blissfully everything was right where I thought it would be. Added my gloves and work boots to the pile.  Safety glasses, bandannas, ear plugs... bibs...  So I have the really critical things ready and heaped into a bag.  I found my airline reservation - yes, for a few panicked hours I couldn't find it  - and I've lined up transportation to and from the airport so that I don't have to pay a fortune to park there for 8 days.  Score!

I still have a few errands to run, some spices to pack for cooking "my" type of foods, some laundry to do and the rest of my packing.

And then I have to get dog things ready.  She's going to split her time between my place and my neighbor's - I can't tell you how pleased I am to not have to board her.  So. Pleased.  So I need to bathe her, and write out feeding instructions, and medication instructions... I will owe Amy & Bobby for a long time for this favor...

I'm working on my small gifts for folks at the Camp... why do those things always take longer than you estimate??  I should not be surprised at this point... but like I say... deadlines... best work...

And then of course, being off work for a week means the week prior is busier than normal... And so naturally what did I do?  I scheduled a hair appointment and an eye doctor appointment for this week!  Brilliant!  Just, brilliant!  lol  Ahhhh sometimes I wonder about me...

Meanwhile, Daniel figured out the materials list and called me with the invoice number at the local (Camarillo) Home Depot, so I called there and paid for that - my second chunk of cash towards the house.  It took me thirty minutes and 3 phone calls to pay an invoice.... Yeah, I do love phone trees, don't you?  And that great music?  But, when I finally got to the guy I needed, he was fabulous.  Thank you, Orlando!  It didn't hurt that the folks at the Pro Desk knew Daniel...  : )  Apparently he is a fixture there...So the construction materials for the Camp have been purchased (check!) and Daniel is figuring out a special Monday morning delivery.  I took the time to celebrate the milestone with a couple of girlfriends... 

And I'm still working on the windows.  Windows, windows, everywhere.  And my learning curve is vertical.  I've just about got it nailed, though.  I've gotten one estimate from the local Marvin windows retailer, and I got another one from a Pella windows retailer, for comparison.  I thought I had answered all the window questions, but noooooooo. For example...

Did you know that if you are in high altitude then you do not want Argon gas between the panes?  Apparently they'll crack.  So then add in the exciting feature that my house is on wheels, and that I just may pass through an high altitude area... yeah, the window rep was scratching his pate.  It was amusing.  I could have an entire chapter in my book about how I have stumped home suppliers with the fact that my house is going to be mobile.  Ohh all the long pauses in conversation...

How about, did you know there is a different exterior coating for the windows if you are in a coastal area where the air is salty and humid?  Do I have plans to park on the coast for an extended period of time?  Would I like to?  Well hell, yes, I'd love to!  And so the questions went...

I think I've figured out my skylights, too.  Size, anyway.  And that it/they will open... I just have to decide if I'm getting one or two.  I can argue it both ways.  We aren't installing windows and skylights at Camp, but we want to frame for them.  That's why the decisions must be made now... 

Through all of this I've been fighting the crud for over two weeks now.  You name a symptom, and I've had it.  I've missed a few days of work, I've slept through an entire weekend, I've missed 8-9 days at the gym, I've been to the doctor twice, I'm slathering on all sorts of essential oils and drinking gallons of water. I hate taking drugs, but I'm trying to have better living through pharmaceuticals.

 I can. not. be. sick. next. week.  Can.  Not.   But hey, I feel skinny.  (I'm a chick, what do you want from me??  I'll find the silver lining...)

My fellow tiny houser T-Homie who is taking the entire week off from work and driving down from Chico to build with me is similarly scrambling to get out of town.  Actually, I think she is scrambling even more than I am, bless her heart.  She's putting her house on the market while she's gone (in anticipation of building HER tiny house!!) and boy is she in the thick of it this week, preparing.  I so feel for her, because I did that in November/December.  It's a killer, but when you pull away from the curb to leave town - man.  You are just beat, but you are so proud of yourself!  Her head is spinning but she's totally getting things done. 

Several people have asked me if it all feels real now - with the purchasing, and the traveling, and planning the little details.  It does and it doesn't.  I think part of the issue is that all of this is happening in another part of the country.  It seems a little abstract. I'm not at all freaked out.  But I think once I get there?  No holds barred.  I fully expect to burst into tears the first time I see my little trailer.  And I am certain that if I try to address the folks at Camp the morning that we start, I'll totally choke up.  Heck, I am tearing up right now, just thinking about that morning!  I may have to be the mute one hanging in the background, and hey, I'll catch ya' when we start swinging hammers - we'll chat.  

Today is Wednesday.... marching towards Saturday...

Ordering Materials and What's Ahead!

In the next day or two I will be placing my first big materials order!  This order will be for the shell:  framing the floor, walls, roof.  Insulating the floor.  Sheathing the house.  Wrapping the house with house wrap, and installing exterior trim.  All of those materials are for my June 24th build week.  EXCITING.

Last week I sat in on the MAGIC Camp's Board meeting via Skype.  It's still sort of an out of body experience to hear construction professionals discuss construction of MY HOUSE.  And at the end of the meeting, Laurie was kind enough to take her phone outside and give me a video walking tour around my trailer.  ::::: beaming::::::  It's gorgeous.  

Along with ordering windows, and ordering construction materials - but for some reason not so much with ordering the trailer - is a sense of being on yet another precipice.   I've been here before: selling my possessions.  Selling my beloved house.  Moving.  And now...

Laying out hard earned cash for materials is another "okay, no turning back now" step.  I did take a bit of time to reflect, assess my plan, and observe my feelings about my adventure to confirm that yes, this is what I want to do.  Yes, I feel like it is a solid plan.  Yes, I feel like it is going to make just a mind blowing difference in my life.  YES.

I'm in a midst of a bit of a re-work of the construction plan.  A few weeks ago I'd been advised of the possibility that the school build with Thousand Oaks may not be happening.  (That's the Fall construction class - not the June MAGIC Camp.)   Despite my offer to sign any waiver the school puts in front of me, the risk management folks at the school are dug in with fear of liability.   That's something I cannot change - their fear based thinking - but it's okay. Thursday last week I pretty much got the 100% "no.".  So now, I'm looking at a 5 day build in June, and then I am working with Daniel on figuring out a new plan of getting my house to Dallas. It won't be the same trip I had envisioned in December - my house complete, pulling over along the way from CA to TX to sleep in it when the travel day was over... but I don't see the change as a negative; it's just a change.

In the beginning, before I had struck the arrangement with Thousand Oaks, I had been determined to drive every nail myself.  Then the win/win partnership came up, and although I was sort of bummed that I wasn't driving every nail myself, and able to scavenger Craig's List and sales for deals, I was excited to know that my house was contributing to learning for students, and that it would definitely be ready for a December move in.

Now I am settling somewhere in the middle:  The MAGIC Camp will build my shell.  And then (in July?) I'll go get it from CA or Santa Fe or Boulder, or somewhere in between and tow it back to Dallas, and finish it up here.  I can do it - I'm not worried about that - I just have to figure out some new logistics:  Where to park it for the actual construction (I already have 2 offers) and finding enough time to do it while working full time.  But it also allows me to have my house here for show and tell which will be amazing!  (Note: Look into truck rentals for local towing...) I believe it will be a marketing tool - for folks to be able to stand in it, and spin around and see color photos of the finish out - and to help me dream.  And to want to be a part of it - and to share their ideas and their dreams with me.  Fantastic.  I am brainstorming about a local partnership for the finish out build - and have some ideas to follow up on.  Dallas is my base - I have connections here - I'm much more able to network here than anywhere else, and so I'm optimistic.  There is a reason for this schedule change - there's a bigger plan that I don't know about yet - but in time I'll figure it out.  Amy and Kelley and I are already scheming on amazing design ideas we want to try... it's so fun to collaborate!

I've had this feeling weighing on me for a couple of weeks now that I need to put together the equivalent of a media/press kit to hand out or email that tells my story and offers a way for people to get involved.  When I say that aloud, it sounds wild even to me - that I am doing something, anything with my life that would require an informational kit of some kind -- !  But it's been a niggle in my brain for a while now, and I need to start assembling it.  I have already had a handful of opportunities when I wished I had something like that to hand over - and there will just be more coming.  

I'm working on my website, too.  Doing the content writing, and coming up with some design ideas.  I'll say for a 7th or 8th time that I am so grateful to have professionals on that task!  A huge thank you to my bestie Kelly at Beyond Indigo and her staff.  A special shout out to Zach...  : )

So onward.  It's all feeling very REAL now.  But it still feels really RIGHT.

Ordering Windows

I am ready to order my windows!  I've submitted my "perfect world window criteria" to a Marvin window retailer near Camarillo, and I'm waiting for the dollar figure to come back.  Frankly I'm sort of bracing myself, because I know it's going to be a big ticket item.

Here is the wish list:

For all the windows:

Interior finish: pine

Exterior finish: aluminum clad, Wineberry

Hardware: will Satin Taupe look good with the pine?

Tempered glass vs. regular?(traveling)

Screens (are they easily removeable?)

5 windows (living room and bathroom)

21”w x 41.5 h

casement 

3 over 1

1 window (kitchen)

21”w x 32” h

casement

 3 over 1

1 window (picture)
49”w x 30”h

Awning

5 over 1

1 window (loft)
25”w x 13.5” h  (rounded over top) see link above for house photos

Awning – this will have a custom stained glass go in it – don’t need glass

I'd like this frame shipped to Dallas so I can give it to the stained glass guy.

1 window (gable)

25”w x 13.5” h   (rounded over top)

Awning

3 panes horizontally

After cost, the remaining factor is when the windows will be installed, which determines where I have the windows shipped.  Daniel isn't sure we will get as far as windows at my Camp build.  If that is the case, I will have them shipped to Dallas (and likely just order them from a Dallas retailer) not Camarillo.  I don't want to have to tote them back to Dallas with my house; that makes no sense.  I've submitted my order to a Dallas company as well, because I have a feeling they will be installed here.  (I dare say that I am the first window customer who offered to bring their house TO the window factory, rather than having a window rep come to me...)

I hope the numbers aren't completely outrageous, so that I can cross window decisions off my list!  It has been a big item for me in more ways than one.

My TRAILER

I totally just want to go lay on it.

Unfortunately, it is over 1,400 miles west of me.

But in 31 days...

The MAGIC Continues

I got my plane ticket booked for the MAGIC Camp build!  I will be there Saturday to Saturday.  The Camp is Monday - Friday.  The movers and shakers out there advised me to arrive on Saturday to get settled in before the Camp begins - and you know, I'll probably want to go roll around on my new trailer* all day Saturday since it will be the first time I've seen it!  LOL  And then post-camp, apparently traffic is so horrific in LA that everyone advised me to stay until Saturday morning!  So that's what I'm doing: Saturday to Saturday.  And I see a really amazing dinner with new friends on Friday night.  I suspect by the end of it I am going to be so high on life that I won't need a plane to fly home...

Last night I was invited to participate via Skype in a Board of Directors meeting with regards to Camp plans.  I'm just going to say - hearing Daniel lay out the daily construction schedule - hearing things like "framing, house wrap, windows, doors, roofing" and knowing that they were referring to MY HOUSE made my head spin.  I felt like I was in some kind of dream - surreal.  It's really happening!

I've written here before about this path that I am on, and how it seems to be laid out before me and how I am just walking it, and that continues.  In the weeks when this whole project idea (partnering with the Camp) was developing and I was contemplating attending but watching my budget, I told several friends that I was going to look into Couch Surfing.  Nina and now Judy have done it with great success, and I had decided it would be a fun way to reduce my expenses.  I mentioned it to friends in conversation, but said what I really hoped would happen was that I could stay with someone involved in the Camp.  I said it several times, to many people, and said you know, how fun would that be?  It would really seal a relationship with someone, and make it "feel" like, I don't know, almost like family.  My build is feeling a lot like a Habitat build to me (as did the California build that I attended) and having that cohesiveness, that sense of community, really ratchets up the satisfaction and good vibes.  And then you use those good vibes to build your home.  That's nothing short of spectacular.

So fast forward to literally the first time I spoke with Laurie on the phone.  I was listening, and learning, and trying to hear what we needed to pull this together.  We were both really pumped about all of the potential and the possibilities of what this could turn into.  And about 8 minutes into the 90 minute conversation?  An offer to stay at her home.  And then, a few minutes later - and I could tell she couldn't really believe herself that she was saying this out loud, she offered me her second car to drive for the week.  Immediately followed by disclaimers in case I was an axe murderer.  Because, you know, that's what we do -- we follow our hearts and blurt things out, and then our mind says, "Hey hey hey now you don't even know this person - what if they are a serial killer?" and then you have to back pedal.  It's human nature - we all do it.  But here I am again - with yet another piece of the journey falling into place.  It's happened repeatedly to me in the last year - and now I just watch these things happen with gratitude and the new found ability to just say, "thank you."

I really believe that you get back what you give out.  I believe that if you do good, you will get good in return.  Last year I did a lot of giving.  I gave time, I gave away material things, I gave emotional support to friends.  And I am getting all of that back three-fold.  Do I deserve it?  I like to think so, but ultimately I am just grateful, and I'm learning to accept help and say "thank you."  This concept that this year is my year to say thank you has come up in more than one conversation with friends in the last year. At first you just laugh and say, "Yeah, okay, thank you!" And then it starts to sink in; it's really a thing.  And I fully expect that next year, with my little house, I am going to be in a position to be giving a lot back.  Giving it back to the people who have given to me, and to the new people that I am going to meet on my new path.

ANYWAY - Whew that was getting deep -- lol -- here's how it sounds like the Camp days will shake out; we will have 20-25 girls attending.

Monday: Safety talk, and framing and insulating the floor

Tuesday: Frame the walls

Wednesday: Frame the roof, guest speaker Karen Wolf**  (more to come on that - an inspiring story!)

Thursday: Sheath the house

Friday: Roofing, and install the front door and windows

Laurie said she isn't sure how many nights Nina and I will actually make it to her house - that she suspects we will spend nights at the school, tinkering with the house... she may not be far off... maybe we will sleep in it one night just to say we did... ha ha wouldn't that be funny?  Maybe Friday night... (Nina - sleeping bags??  LOL)

*      Oh you KNOW I will post photos!

**     I hope my notes are accurate on her name; it was a tiny bit hard to hear