Witching For Water...

"I Want To Believe"

At some point of this adventure we are going to regrade the driveway to take some high and low spots out, making it easier to navigate when the snow hits.  While discussing with Neil what we'd like to do, he mentioned that the water and power lines that currently run to the mobile were not buried very deep.  This meant if we took to much off the highspots of the driveway, the water line could potentially freeze during cold snaps.  Neil also mentioned that he had figured out where the water line was by using "witching rods"... This is the technique we've probably all seen in old movies where some shady looking fellow uses a willow branch to figure out where to dig a new well.  If you're anything like me, skepticism is your first reaction to this method of locating water.  When I chuckled in disbelief, Neil went to his truck and produced two brass rods that had  90 degree bends in them.  He slowly started walking near our well head with the rods held loosely in his hands until one of them rotated outwards.  Again, my gut reaction was that we already knew there was a water line buried near the well and he was manipulating the rods.  I absolutely had to try this myself to be a believer so Neil handed me the rods and told me how to hold them.  I held the rods very loosely and as I approached the area we knew the line was buried, one of the rods slowly moved outwards, parallel to the direction the line was buried...  To say I was astonished is an understatement, I'm now a believer...  I'm also considering that Sasquatch might really exist.

Entry Window

Kitchen Windows

Tuesday morning came with pouring rain and a forecast for more of it all week long.  Jordan and his crew arrived early, followed shortly by the site superintendant, Dan.  I went out to greet everyone and talk about a few changes we had decided to make.  On the back basement wall we had planned for a window under the walkaround porch but after seeing the opening and the way the land lays at the back of the house, the window really seems nonsensical so we have decided to fill it in.  We have also decided to add two windows in the kitchen, one on each side of the range, in hopes of letting in more light.  The front door was originally specified as being 36"s wide but after seeing some houses with wider front doors, we decided to widen ours to 42"s.  We had originally wanted a window on the front of the house to let light into the staircase but because of the roof overhang, a window would not have worked well in this area.  After looking at photos of old house entryways, we decided we could put a window close to the front door to help lighten up our entry.  The final change we wanted to make was in the master-bathroom;  we are planning for a free-standing tub with a window beside it. 

The plan originally called for a large, almost square window that didn't seem to fit well with the theme of the house and because of it's style, you really wouldn't be able to see out of it when sitting in the tub.  At this time we are still a bit undecided between a rectangular window like the one shown here (we won't be having a chandalier), or a double casement window that has two windows that swing outward... something we have to decide by monday because the framers will start framing the main floor.

After going through the changes with Jordan, he and his crew started marking chalk lines in the basement in preparation for the lumber that should've been arriving that morning.  Four hours later the lumber still hadn't arrived which I'm sure must be annoying as anything for Jordan and his crew.  At 12:00pm I was on my way into town and passed a truck loaded with lumber that I hoped was destined for our place.  I got home at 2:00 to find the lumber had arrived and the guys had already made some decent progress.  People always talk about how fast the framing goes up and it really is true.  By the end of the week the basement had been completely framed and the wrap around porch and deck of the right elevation had been framed and were ready for the decking material.  Both Margaret and I get home from work in complete darkness but we can't stop ourselves from going out in the darkness with a flashlight to poke around and see what progress was made.