This morning I went out to visit Larry, the sawyer, to pick up the 2x4s I will need to frame up my floor, walls and roof. My friend Stephanie and I arrived at his farm to the most pleasant morning imaginable. It was sunny and warm, in the high 60s with a slight breeze. From Larry's hilltop mill, we enjoyed the sight of the smoke from two brushfires in the distance and the silhouette of the Prudential Center in Boston, over 50 miles off on the horizon. Once again Larry quoted me prices I couldn't believe- 2"x4"(actual 2 by 4 inches, not nominal 2x4) by 8' boards for $1.10 a piece! When I say 8 feet, I actually mean something closer to 12 feet since that is what he happened to have on the top of the pile. We loaded the truck with the lumber before enjoying a celebratory Miller Highlife and swig of blackberry brandy with Larry (apparently if you wake up at 5am it is okay to have a beer before 11). After the beer we begrudgingly peeled ourselves away from the scent of warm earth and sawdust to return to Worcester.
After unloading the lumber and soaking up some more sun, I coaxed one of my housemates, Dillon, to help me finish shaping my flooring. To cut the tong and groove I ended up buying a cheep set of router bits for the purpose. I was a little worried that a standard router would not be powerful enough to cut through the oak. Cutting the tong was definitely slow going, but it worked out in the end- about three hours of labor. The groove went much faster though. We had already made all of the decisions on the orientation of the boards during the previous operation and since there is much less material to remove, we could feed the boards through faster. The groove only took us a half hour.
Finally I am set up to really get some work done. Check back to see the floor get laid, walls framed, and a big window installed!
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