Detailing at the Copper Crown Suite of the Hazelnut Inn is continuing at a brisk pace in preparation for the grand opening, and things are looking great! Jay is doing the painting, starting with the inside panel of the door. The custom door and jamb were crafted locally by AJ Woodworking. We then jigged the door onto our CNC router for basic routing, followed by hand carving to add details and finally some gentle sandblasting to enhance the beautiful woodgrains. The wood was then stained and varnished before installation. After the interior construction was finished, we turned Jay loose to make the door beautiful with colour befitting a medieval castle. As always, he knocked it out of the park! It is a handmade door fit for royalty!
Lawn mowing adventure
We purchased our small acreage in Yarrow almost 23 years ago. With Janis’ (somewhat reluctant) blessing, I purchased a beautiful green lawn tractor just before the deal on the property was final. On the very first day we officially owned the property, I had the joy of mowing the expansive grass for the first time. It was instantly my happy place. As we settled into the old farmhouse, negotiations began almost immediately about where the fences would go, what part of the yard would be lawn and what would be used for other purposes. Becke, of course, was a part of the negotiations as she insisted I make good on a promise I made to her when she was little. When she asked for a horse, we told her there was no room in our yard. The logical assumption was made that if we ever got a larger piece of property, a horse would be part of the deal. Easy promise back then and honoured fifteen years later. One horse led to another, and before I could blink, there was a herd of miniature horses on our property.
Eventually, Becke and Janis formed Pipsqueak Paddocks Miniature Horse Rescue Society, and with the help of a team of volunteers, they rescued almost 300 miniature horses over about ten years. The horses most often were only on our property for a short while, but as emergencies arose, more land was negotiated away from my much-prized large lawn and fenced and cross-fenced into needed paddocks. As we built the shop, expanded the driveway, landscaped and eventually built the new house, the fence lines would need to be changed. With each revision, we would have a family meeting, armed with spray bombs and tape measures. We would stake out the proposed fence lines and discuss all the possibilities. I was always defending my prized lawn, of course, while Janis and Becke were seeking to expand the paddocks. My beautiful rolling lawn got pretty small at times.
The fences were moved regularly as our needs changed, sometimes making the lawn smaller and sometimes larger. Just over ten years ago, Becke decided to locate her house on our property, and the landscape and fence lines changed dramatically. My beloved lawn became larger than it had ever been. I was delighted. The horses were no longer a regular feature in our yard, but two paddocks remained at the back of the property - just in case. After two years of non-use, serious negotiations were initiated once again. It was decided that the last of the cross fences would be removed, and I got to mow the ‘lawn’ around the front of the studio for the first time in many, many years. Over the next few months, proper soil was brought into this area, and real grass was added. Then Peter and Hailey bought the property next door to build the Hazelnut Inn. Their house and yard will flank our property at the back. That meant the grass I mowed was expanded significantly. While the Inn has now been finished, their dream house and yard are yet to be done. In the meantime, it is a play yard with a large, tall hill where the house is to be eventually built. I used to dream of a perfectly manicured lawn, but the reality of dogs and active kids using the yard every day makes that much less important. My heart sang this morning as I did my best to trim the lawn with the mower. The space was vibrantly alive with thousands of dandelions that had sprung up in my absence for the last week, and the kids took great delight in doing their best to pick the seeded dandelions and scatter the seeds to the gentle breeze. I no longer take huge pride in having the nicest lawn, but rather wish to be the grampa with the funnest yard.
Travelling art
As always, I’ve booked generous layovers to ensure flight delays along my way home don’t make it hard to get there in one day without stress. And as is often the case, my first flight of the day was an hour late leaving the Orlando terminal. The good news is that the delay made my Dallas layover a little shorter. As I waited in both terminals, I made the best of my downtime and did three concept drawings for my next year’s entries in the Sign Invitational. One of the event’s supporters is IBEX, our new routing software, and so I wanted to make a killer piece for their display. The piece will be a wonderful challenge to help me learn this new software and will be an eye-catching showpiece of what is possible. Stay tuned for the fun…
