We're really doing this!!!

Now this project is getting exciting. Ever since we got back from Christmas Break, we have been working ON-SITE. There has been a lot to do as well. We've been clearing out a ton of brush and bringing it to the front of the site for the city to pick it up. There's something about carrying 60 pound logs over and over again that makes you feel so good. And I'm not being sarcastic. I can tell I'm going to get in a lot better shape, strength-wise working on this project and that's exciting in and of itself. But its something about actually being out there that makes you feel like you're being so much more productive. I can tell this is going to be a great experience because its so hands-on and you really learn a lot not only from Habitat volunteers but from your peers as well. So, other than site clean-up, a major focus of ours has been the formwork for the concrete slab portion of the house. Stringing the limits proved to be a fairly difficult task as significant adjustments had to be made but I understand that you're not going to get everything right the first time. Its a lot of trial and error, especially for us students where most of us haven't done this sort of thing before, but you learn from your mistakes. Once we got the strings right, which felt really good because the dimensions were perfect, we continued with driving stakes and nailing 2x12s to define the limits of the slab. Towards the back corner we used plywood instead because it was more efficient since the wall is almost 4' high. This weekend, in my eyes was very productive and each day it hits me more and more that we're actually doing this. And even, though right now what we're doing is temporary construction, we are step-by-step getting closer and closer towards improving the quality of life for a hard-working family.