My Day Off

Yesterday was my last day as a member of the Jethro's Barn Reconstruction Crew.  It had to be the last day; right now, today, they're running a session.  A full jazz band, vocals, the whole deal.  Both of those new Iso-booths are in use.  They're not painted, not even primered in fact, but wired up for sound and doing what they're built to do.

Jethro crashed on the couch last night to use that commuting time for soldering cables instead.  And I woke up this morning to THIS.

Scenery so beautiful that my little Cybershot can't really get it, but am I ever glad I didn't have to drive into the city through it.

I like to frame up the shot to exclude the neighbour's houses and fences... this way I can pretend they sort of aren't there.  I love my neighbours but I'd love to have horses and fields instead.  You know.  But, do I ever love my backyard.  What a blessing to look out and see this!

My last day on the job site was slightly stressful, simply because of the extreme time crunch.  I got there at 10 am, after rush hour.  Young Bubba was already there, looking sleepy eyed, while the hired cleaners were busy vacuuming and wiping and dusting.  I had windowsills to paint.  Every window has to have two angled sheets of glass.  That air gap between the walls is vital to soundproofing, and the glass panes sort of hold the air so that all I can think of is air-fish floating around in there.  Good thing air fish don't exist.  The gap had to be taped shut, or else that space between the glass would soon fill with insulation dust.  We painted the space flat black to keep it inconspicuous and cut down the glare.  I like pretending that I know what I'm talking about here. 

In the early afternoon we had to send Big Dusty Dude home.

We all had a bit of a Shawn withdrawal. The place just seemed so empty without him! But his lady needed him back. I got a giant bear hug before he left and I kept thinking how necessary he was to this project. We'd have been scrood without him. Seriously.  All three of these guys worked so well together, and genuinely enjoyed the project, despite the stupidly long hours.  I liked hanging with the guys.  They were fun.  And I like work.  Feeling useful, and seeing the results of your work, is gratifying.  

See this wall here?  It was not there two weeks ago.  There was a railing there instead of a wall and window.  On the other side was a huge open space where we used to keep the dining table.

The table lives in the lounge now.  Right beside the big TV that nobody watches.  See the steam cleaner at the bottom of the stairs?  I used it to suck the dust out of the stairs, three desk chairs, and a rug.  My wrists are sore.  Oh crap, I gotta take that thing back today.  Thanks for reminding me.

Here's a view from the live floor into the new booths.  You can see the big white spot that used to be the main door from the live floor out to the former dining area.

There are so many doors and windows in this place now... the vacuuming girl couldn't figure out how to get into the control room!  It's going to be great; during a session, everybody, the engineers in the control room and all the musicians, will be able to see each other.  And the light!  I usually hate construction (and it got to me, it really did) but I really started to fall more deeply in love with my husband's studio.  I started to feel like it's okay for me to be in debt for half a recording studio.  I might be resenting the huge amount of debt and the constant money-suck a little less.

For this shot, I was standing in front of the fridge.  The open door goes to the new, soundproof booth, and beyond that is the control room - my control room!  I am so familiar with that room now!  To the right is the small booth, formerly known as the big open space for the table.  

Oddly enough, taking up that big open space has not made the studio feel cramped.  When the musicians loaded in last night - while the three of us were still steam cleaning and installing glass - I heard so many exclamations of surprise and approval.  One guy said he thought it seemed bigger.  I think a 20 ft ceiling helps.

It occurred to me that we could fit our entire house in this unit twice, with room left over.  Then I thought about how incredible this is... Us, a gear head who grew up behind the feed mill, and the farmer's daughter.  Wow.  And how ridiculous this is.  We're broke, man.  This is why.  But it's not a waste.  We're building something here, both literally and figuratively.

I know you want to see how the control room - my control room!- turned out.  I'm happy with it, now that I can see the result.

Here's the view from the couch, at the back of the room:

And here's the steam cleaned acoustic panels with the new furniture!

I still need to come back in December, when this session is done, to primer and paint.  For now, we're calling this the Neo-post-constructionist Style.

The rented Steinway was rolled into the original, expanded booth last night.  The piano player was quite happy.  Apparently everybody loves a Steinway, but few can afford to own one.

This thing is gorgeous, and sounds even better.  So bold and chunky!  

I like the way this picture turned out.  The scratch marks look like a sea of long grass over a sunset lake.

I also like to think of the wildly flailing hands that made these marks!  That is the result of some enthusiastic and bold playing!

I got home last night and cuddled up with the kids for a bit of TV and then BED.  I've been popping an Ativan at night to get that chest pain out. Today has been mostly about dishwashing, snow shovelling, and dog scratching.  I needed a burnout day.  The guys are working, after this insane three week renovation, while I lounged and relaxed.  Hey man.  I'm just not as DURABLE as they are.

I'm angling for a reward for all my work.  I'm thinking a "new" saddle, or a stereo for my truck, or maybe both?  Either way, Jethro's barn here has been the priority, but I'll get a barn of my own.  Oh yes.  It will happen.  It will be mine.

Tomorrow it's back to my usual.  Today, I have big clouds of clinging snow to look at.