House of the Seven Gables
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| Front Porch with Seventh Gable |
The framing of our house is complete. We now have a front porch where we can sit and watch the great blue heron waiting patiently to catch a fish. This is my favorite view from our property. I love watching the seasonal colors of the marsh grass, the rising and falling of the tide, the osprey that usually sits on a dock end post and even the ice that forms along the edge of the riverbank in winter. Finally, we have a perch where we can sit viewing the Cape’s natural beauty.
Chuck Lacey, Jr. did a great job executing the architectural detail of the gable on the front porch roof. We are continually impressed by the skills of the Lacey clan. We think the gable complements the house perfectly and will deter a torrent from soaking anyone who comes to the front door. Last week it was pointed out to us that we actually now have seven gables. We had to walk around several times counting before we really believed it. We'll have to re-read Hawthorne's book.
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| Dr. O Scales the Heights |
Chris has joined that legion of teachers who spend their summers painting houses, but he didn’t anticipate being 29 feet above the ground with a putty knife in his hand. He doesn’t particularly mind heights because as a volunteer firefighter in the 1970's he had to climb ladders regularly. But he is finding it a bit more difficult balancing on two 12 inch planks holding a paint bucket and brush. In the course of a four step process he has to putty all the nail holes, caulk the joints, prime, and finally paint the boards.
He started on the back of the house, climbing up a very long extension ladder to reach the staging. Once seated, feet dangling, he takes long swipes at the trim trying to get as much covered as possible before having to move gingerly to another spot. The view is great from this height. He can watch the young ospreys soaring over the marsh trying out their wings, or boats putting up the river passing kayaks and paddle boards . But he does have to watch out for biting green head flies and the occasional curious bumblebee.
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| Marsh View |
