"... I can change the world, with my own two hands. Make a better place, with my own two hands. Make a kinder place, with my own two hands. Make peace on earth, with my own two hands. I can clean up the earth, with my own two hands. I can reach out to you, with my own two hands. I am gonna make it a better place, make it a brighter place ..." - Ben Harper
A MILESTONE! On April 26th 2022, I cut the first piece of wood for the timber frame!!
It wasn't my first day working with Strobox. I started in January, in the heart of winter. They were wrapping up (literally) one of their biggest constructions made to date. Maybe not the most gentle introduction leaving from home and returning in the dark at below freezing temperatures most days, wrapped up in all layers I could possibly wear. But hey, it could only get easier.
A week or two later, we started with the next house. All timber panels are prepared in their workshop and Roelof introduced me to the masonry saw. The first step in the process: cutting the timber at the right lengths and angles. It scared the hell out of me; the responsiblity! It was quite the puzzle, especially as it also required calculating wood length efficiency to reduce leftovers. That last part should come quite naturally to my conscious self, you'd think. But my internal debate weighed up the possibility of defrosting my frozen limbs while firing up the wood burning stove to tidy up scrap wood!
Anyways, I was getting the hang of it. I started to love the challenge and the nature of working with wood. Each piece of wood was unique, and alive. It felt humbling to feel its history and know this creature had so cleverly absorbed and permanently captured a small part of the global monster we keep creating; CO2.
A few houses later, it was my turn! It became real. My dream, my design, a vision. No longer a concept, it started to take physical shape. Within three weeks, all timber frames and panels were built and insulated. Most insulation being straw, just the floor panels being wood fiber (in concern of upcoming moisture), and an annoying employee here and there. These were three very special weeks, and I was more anxious than ever about the immense challenge ahead. Tensions built towards the end, but the spirit was high and I was boiling with energy every morning I would cycle to the workshop.
In between cutting wood, I took a moment or two to put up a camera and capture these special moments:
Next up: THE MAGIC INGREDIENT - PART 2!