The Archives

Gabriola, Log building, Random
Cobras can scribe
06.10.09 | Permalink | Comment?

Yesterday at school was a pretty decent day. We did nothing in the class in the morning because, it has not rained once since I’ve been here (aside from about 35 minutes one of the first days I was here), so there is a fire ban on the island which prevents the use of combustion tools after 1pm. That means we can’t run the gas chainsaws (we mostly use electric, so not a huge deal) or the Wood-Mizer. So to get the most out of the day, we just got right at it. I had missed the day before, so everything looked different when I got there. I had to think about where I had left off on Friday before doing anything – with the weekend I had, it was easy to forget all about it. I remembered that I had finished cutting my in-fill log’s lateral groove for the second time that afternoon, because my original scribe was terrible, and I had some large gaps, but I didn’t have enough time to test fit my second scribe.

*Quick explanation of what I’m talking about: When we make in-fill walls, we stack logs horizontally, about 9 high (around 8′), in a jig, with about an inch to an inch and a half of gap between each log. Then we scribe all the logs (we use basically a pair of dividers and either scratch or mark the surface with a pencil), which traces the contour of one log onto the next. Then you cut close to, but not on this line, and work your way down. If done right you should have no gap between your logs when you stack them on top of each other.

I was interested to see how it turned out, so I got Zack to help me lift it onto the one it sits atop. When I saw there was an enormous gap running half the length of the log on either side, I was immediately frustrated. I thought maybe there was a chance I had missed something I should have taken out, rather than taken out something I shouldn’t have. I got down and looked in my groove, and there was a huge knot holding the whole end up about a quarter inch. It took 4 seconds with a chainsaw to fix it, and now it looks unreal. I thought for a second yesterday morning that this post would be titled “Cobras CAN’T Scribe”, but no effin way! Even without arms, we’re masters of the hand crafted log homes.

That’s my log there on top. It’s pretty cool. I scalloped the ends of it and 3 other logs yesterday too, but didn’t feel the need to take a photo.

Speaking of photos, I like the one up top. I liked it even more once I got home and looked at it on my machine. Did YOU notice why?

*answer after the link*

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Gabriola, Random
Silva Bay smoked lunches
06.09.09 | Permalink | Comment?

This is the view from Don’s deck. Don’s a 40 something year old logger who loves to smoke on his lunch. We’re tight. I love coming here and looking out at the water after eating, and then smoking a fat dub. The other day there was even a half dozen R.C. sailboats messing around, and the day before that, some otters!
Life, Love
Cobras sleep better in pairs
06.09.09 | Permalink | Comment?

I miss waking up with this lady every morning. I will get to do it for a few days in just under three weeks, and I’m finding it difficult to think or care about anything else right now. Hopefully the next 18 days fly by.
Gabriola, Log building
Domino falling
06.08.09 | Permalink | Comment?

Another video of yesterday’s devastation. This one is Blair taking down 4 trees at once. The goal was to get 5 at one time, but there was a little guy who got propped up by some of the branches of the bigger tree that fell before it had a chance to. It was still really cool to see. I wish the camera could capture the full scale of how loud it is when they hit the ground. It’s cool.
Gabriola, Health, Log building
Cobra Vs Tree
06.08.09 | Permalink | 2 Comments

Yesterday I was planning on spending the afternoon relaxing and working on some drawings, and hopefully talking with Holly. Shortly after noon (I think) Don, Zack, and Blaire showed up here asking if I wanted to come join them and learn to do some falling. I wasn’t prepared and tried to get out of going, but Don was persistent and offered to drive me to and from, so I asked him to wait while I got dressed and rolled a joint. We went to the school and cleared some trees to make a path from the school to the new property James bought. I watched Zack and Blaire drop a few small trees, then Alex (the dude from Korea), had a turn. Then I got a quick lesson and got to drop two fairly big trees, and a smaller one. The biggest one I dropped was about 60 something feet, but my memory card ran out of space just as we were pushing it over. Still, it was cool even if I didn’t catch it on camera. This tree was off aim by a few feet, but for my first one, I think I did alright.

After we drank a few beers Don dropped us all off, and brought me and Vince (another dude from our course who showed up just before we were leaving) back to David’s. Vince stayed here in April while he was taking the Post and Beam course, but now he’s camping down at Page’s Marina. He’d asked about coming over one night for a barbecque a couple times, so I offered to make him veggie burgers. We were chatting about how neither of us like tv much, and then I mentioned how much Star Trek I watch. He said he’s seen every episode of every series, but he hadn’t seen any of the movies since Star Trek V. I told him I had the newest, and that it was decent, so we watched it while we ate.

Then I went to bed with a brutal headache and woke up with it still there this morning. Now I’m procrastinating riding to school by writing this entry, and drinking tea. I really don’t feel up to going, but I hate not showing up because not only is it an expensive place to miss a day you paid for, it’s also a group effort, and I feel like it’s rude to not do my share of the work. Not to mention the fact that James seems like a person who has never taken a sick day in his life, so I don’t think he’d be okay with it.

Oh, I forgot to mention, Vince was a real life Cowboy for years before deciding to come to the school! YeeeeHaw!
Gabriola, Log building, Sketchup
Logging and blogging
06.07.09 | Permalink | 1 Comment

This is the building we are in the process of creating right now. We have two weeks left to finish it. I think we are ahead of schedule. We won’t be adding the doors and windows, but I threw them in because the rendering looks boring without them. I need to still model the roof rafters and put an entire roof system on, but that’s not really important in this course, and it would probably take me a lot more time than it’s worth. It’s going to be a nice little building when we’re all done. I think I’d like to build one for a hot tub or sauna or something one day.

I’ve spent most of the morning working on that rendering and a bunch of my log notes. I’m going to have the best notes ever! I would like to get together with some of the other guys this week and compare notes. Not to brag, but just in case I missed some important things while trying to model what James is describing.
Gabriola, Life
Cobras are criminals
06.07.09 | Permalink | 3 Comments

I’m in a bit better mood today, so I’m going to attempt to right about what happened Friday night after school, for the second or third time.

Just before school ended, everyone decided we should all meet up for some drinks at the Surf Pub after showers and dinner. I made arrangements for someone to come pick me up and drop me off, because the pub is about as far from my house as is possible on this island and I wouldn’t have made it on bike after working all day.

I came home, talked to Holly briefly, and then showered and got ready just in time for my ride to show up. I had asked my friend Ryan,from Wisconsin, to pick me up. He came with his roommate Zack, who is also taking the course with us, and is also from the US (Rhode Island). We sat on the deck and smoked a joint while I rolled another three to bring with us, and I introduced them to Canada’s Worst Handyman. They both loved CWH, and after a couple episodes we piled into Ryan’s truck.

When we got in the truck it was a tight fit with all three of us in there, and it made my belt buckle impossible to reach – I should mention that every time I get into a vehicle on the island with a resident, they make sure you have your belt on. Apparently the police here will tolerate some speeding, but have zero tolerance for not wearing a seat belt. I thought for a brief moment about mentioning this to the others, but for some reason decided “What the fuck, there are never any cops here.”, and just kept quiet. (more…)
Life
Cobras can’t cope
06.06.09 | Permalink | Comment?

I had a bunch of stuff I wanted to write about but now I’m incredibly angry and don’t feel like it. This weekend has been absolute shit, and it’s only Saturday evening.
Gabriola, Log building, Random
Gay-bull
06.04.09 | Permalink | Comment?

Today was supposed to be a record breaking day as far as temperature goes here on the island. I’m not sure exactly how hot it got, but it was brutal to work in the sun. Half way through the day we busted out the hose and regularly sprayed ourselves and the logs we were peeling until it just got to be too much. My partner, Dave, and I finished our gable plate today. That’s it pictured above. I was really pleased with how it turned out, except for a few spots I’ll need to do some finish planing, or possibly sanding. I did a large portion of the layout, and got basically everything right the first time. I think it’s mainly due to the fact that I’ve been spending so much time doing layout for things like this in Sketchup for the last few months. Plus, I’ve already modeled the entire building, so I have a much better understanding of what goes where, and how it all looks in it’s different phases of completion. Last time I was here I made several mistakes in my layout. Luckily, I caught all but one before it was too late.

Hopefully tomorrow isn’t as hot, and I don’t feel as shitty in the morning. Today was brutal at times.
Gabriola, Life, Log building, Sketchup
Cobras can’t drink
06.04.09 | Permalink | Comment?

Yesterday I spent the day making a gable plate (a gable plate is that top piece with the scarf joint) with my partner Dave. It is coming along nicely, and today we’re going to make a template for the scarf, then we should be able to finish this piece! So far I enjoy working with the logs and chainsaws. I’m not sure I’d like to build with logs for a living, but I could definitely see myself doing it for maybe a few years – long enough to master the basics.

After school a couple guys asked me to teach them Sketchup, and I said sure. No one actually came when they said they would, so I finished modeling the log building we’re making, then around 9pm 3 guys from the course showed up and invited me to the Surf. The Surf is one of the island’s 3 bars. It’s got the nicest view and location, but it’s a terrible example of log building, that looks like it could fall apart. I rolled a couple joints, drank a few beers, then we went down there to see a Scotsman I just recently met named Blaire, recite a 12 minute Scottish poem about a drunkard who witnesses an orgy of Satan and witches in a church, whilst stumbling home trashed with his horse. The witches and Satan chase Tam (the poem’s protagonist) and before he can reach the keystone in the bridge where he’ll be safe, they manage to cut off his horse’s tail. It was very entertaining, and even better when twice he forgot lines and had to have someone shout them out to him to get him back on track.

I love going to the bars here. Everyone is so nice. Some don’t wear shoes. Some bring their dogs. Most get up and sing or play guitar or something. Either way, it’s always a good time.

I can’t wait for Holly to get here, so I can kidnap her and make her live here with me.