Making frames for the greenhouse glass, I am. 1 x 1 angle steel welded together to make a ‘T’ and then, in the middle of the length, an upside down four foot long ‘T’ to sister onto the 9 foot long right-side up ‘T’. Makes a + profile. I am hoping that it is strong enough. It is, I am sure, but the glass is heavy. Maybe 300 pounds for each of the three 9 x 5 sections of double-paned glass on the roof?
The problem is not the steel, it is me. I am not the world’s best welder (maybe the worst) and I also made the angle of the roof pretty shallow (10 degrees) so it is just a bit better than flat. Kinda had to – given the various configurations of puzzling out the odd-sized panes to try to make a box of any kind. It has been a challenge, this greenhouse, and it is not over yet.
I mention all this for a few reasons. One, I have other things to do and having to do this project now on my third iteration, I am irritated. I should be further along. And there is little if any guarantee number three is the charm. I may end up with the Greenhouse Mark Vll edition or worse.
A second reason is that time marches inexorably and it is now November. The 2015 Greenhouse may very well become the 2016 Greenhouse. And it is unlikely to be ready in time to try growing anything this winter. Did I mention that I was irritated?
A third reason is my lack of zen-ness over this sort of thing. Zen-types don’t get irritated. And THAT irritates me all the more. I’d like to punch a zen-type smack in the face right about now.
Breathe……10….9…8….7…..
“If that is all you have bothering you, you are pretty lucky, sweetie!”
She’s right, of course. I am very lucky and that is about all I have bothering me. The rest of it? I am pretty happy.
Still, I have chores and they are piling up again. Mostly because I have cut my hard four-hour day down to an easy just-short-of-four hours a day. I get going by 12:30 and quit at 4:30 but, well, you know…if it is raining…or I am expecting an e-mail….or the mail came….need a cup of tea…… OK, maybe I should be describing it as a hard three-hour day?
Winter does that to me. The weather, the lack of light, the cold, the rain…just makes you less inclined to get out there and build, ya know? I am not alone. Most of the locals ‘hibernate’. They may wait a bit longer – like January – but they hunker down, too. I am really just acclimating, getting assimilated into the local sloth-like culture. I may even be eligible for head sloth this year.
Now THAT would be a competition. A lot of contenders for head sloth out here. Some of them pretty good at it, too. Been slothing a long time, some of them. Real veterans. But the question is really oxymoronic, isn’t it? Sloths competing at slothdom?
Never mind.
I guess what I am saying (to myself) is that I have to get off the rock sometime this winter. I have hardly been off at all this year so far. It was a great year for staying put. And I am OK with that but it does make your world smaller. Something shrinks a bit. Moss grows on your shoes. You pretty much have to re-immerse yourself in to the simmering cauldron, the stinkin’ cesspool, the maelstrom of madness we call civilization (for short) now and then, I think, to get some perspective.
I balk, of course. But I also notice my perspective narrowing if I don’t go exercise it. I may have to get out a bit this winter.
And then take a long hot shower and vow never to do it again.
That is what I am saying.
Our Off the Grid Home 
Ack! Whats the rush? If the fricken thing doesnt get “finished” this winter. No biggie. There’s always sheets of clear plastic as a substitution for ‘windows’ if you want to get an early start on veggies or flowers. I knew a tobacco farmer in PEI that would grow plants all winter long in his plastic greenhouses. Stick a small heater in there with a thermostat to keep the cold at bay( he used a 100 year old wood stove) and voila! Cucumber sandwiches for the Queen in May! Rule Britannia ( or Britannia Beach in this case).
As for winning the “Sloth Award” take a walk down to any BC Ferry and ask one of the employees for pointers……they mastered the technique of 1 hour jobs taking a full 12 hour shift years ago.
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You guys are right, of course, but it is NOT really about the Greenhouse. It is about (surprise) me. I am clearly not ‘getting this job done efficiently or well’. Despicable me! Having done my mea culpa, I can relax a bit (apologies are primarily presented to get another chance at screwing up again and that is why I do them). But the main point is that I need to get off the rock to get a bit of balance. I need a vacation from my vacation. If you know what I mean. Put more bluntly: I need a really hot curry, a couple of beers and some naan at the Mumbai Massala and I kinda need it bad. It used to be that way with White Spot. I’d go traveling for 3 or 4 months and, after hugging my mom hello, I’d head for the nearest White Spot to get my bearings and triple 0’s. It’s a primal thing.
But too much of the city makes for people taking jobs as human traffic cones (BCF) and I know where the better place is.
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Ya got that right! I get away driving up the Fraser Canyon and visiting a one horse town. People are friendly and want to chat. No parking issues, no pollution, no street people, no hamburger chains and it is 1950s for a few hours. Get off the rock for a curry!
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The rolls of greenhouse plastic are a good idea. Tomatoe growing greenhouses in our area are mostly plastic covered and regularly replaced subject as they are to the weather and green algae growth. Unusually wet winter forecasted so you might want to do more indoor stuff like quilting or tatting. RG.
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‘Four hour days’. I love it! I used to think I was just lazy, but now I recognize it as a legal OTG trait. Especially if its condoned by a reputable OTGer.
And I’m with you. If it doesn’t get done today it becomes an issue to be addressed later. Goodness knows, we’ll need an issue to get out of bed when the weather becomes truly inclement.
Last year I went to Australia to escape my first OTG winter. And we didn’t have one (winter, that is). So this year I’ve decided to ‘winter’ it out at home. I think. Just got an invite to go to PV for a month. May go just to see if my absence has anything to do with climate change.
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I am SURE the two (you and the climate) are related. And, just so you know, my lethargic ways are condoned fully by every male in the area and yet roundly condemned by all the women. Mind you, most of the complaints are aired at bookclub or the quilting bee…….over wine or tea.
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Your blog post has been extremely valuable for me. Thanks!
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