Studio Magic

So there's a chance that the Morning Benders will be stopping by the Moscow/Pullman area, or possibly Spokane. And here's another video from Yours Tru.ly to get you excited.

Yourstru.ly Presents: The Morning Benders "Stitches" from Yours Truly on Vimeo.

The Mountain

Seven Devils

Ahoy there, Amy and I took a little trip to the Seven Devils last weekend, and here are some shots. I hadn't been in the area for about 6 years, and it was totally awesome to be there in the heat of summer to be able to jump in Sheep Lake. We made our way in through Goat Pass, which turned the normal 9 mile hike in into a 2 hour scramble which left us with plenty of time to relax, swim and walk around the lake. The next day we attacked He Devil, then packed up and got out just as a sweet mountain thunderstorm hit. Perfecto!

Cedar!

Thanks to Howard Jones and his magical shop of woodworking wonders, I've been able to try tackling a few other projects in addition to the occasional mustache. This is my latest, a window planter made of some reclaimed cedar shelving. Home to basil and cascading Fountain Crimson and Trailing Sapphire.

New Horse Feathers

The fruits of an Idaho upbringing.

Horse Feathers | Belly Of June | A Take Away Show from La Blogotheque on Vimeo.

Mustache #3!

There you have it. The third installment of the Mustache Saga. For sale at the Storm Cellar.

A Good Argument for Creationism

Observe and compare.

Stage Two

Rad

Yours Truly Presents: The Morning Benders "Excuses" from Yours Truly on Vimeo.

Movies Are Becoming Collages of Other Movies

So The Matrix, I Am Legend, and Blade 2 were all hanging out in the park.....

First Stage of Restoration

Yosh

Who wants to go see Thao and the Get Down Stay Down in Spokane on the 24th? New album's out, and here's the first video from it that I know of.

Hiking

We're heading down to the Seven Devils this afternoon for one last trip before the snows come. Weather's looking pretty bad, rain and under 50 degrees, but that's what Gore-Tex and goose down are for. Enjoy these pictures until we get back.

Stream That, Out on the Flo

The new Avett Brothers album, I and Love and You, is currently streaming for free on the NPR website. I've given it a single, distracted listening and my initial concerns remain; too tame, too ballad-y without the usual gripping lyrics and hooks that make their previous Gleam EPs soooo good. I'm definitely going to be listening to this a lot for the 7 days that it'll be up on NPR, and hopefully I'll discover the hidden gold.

Photo cred to Volker Neumann, who I found on flickr.

Mo' Building

Thanks to a flexible farm and cleaning schedule I've been able to take on a few extra projects this summer/fall. This here's the shop I'm lending a hand to just outside of Princeton, ID. We worked on the rafters most of the past few weeks, and last Thursday I cut and placed the blocking between trusses in order to connect each independent section of the roof together.

Something wild about building that I've been made more aware of recently is the strength of small things in large numbers. That roof is divided into five separate bays, each of which is only supported by what's under it with no side to side support. The blocking I'm putting in consists of an 8 inch piece of 2x8 secured by 4 nails. Looking at the thing you realize it's smaller than your dinner plate. But when you place 20 of them in good spots, it's all of a sudden bomb-proof. Neato.

Project Update

The Woodshed. Is there a better DIY project for the American male living the great Northwest? There can't be.

I'm trying to go super cheap with my materials but super classy with my style. Reading lots of homesteader's books on building has grown a certain fascination with wood-joining, so I did a bit of notching for my support braces. Greg Albrecht also introduced me to the wonderful world of building with timber poles cut yourself, which I used for the front braces. So far I've only spent money on the lag screws, washers, and 4 ten-foot 2x4s. Next step is the rafters, which I started cutting with birds-mouth notches today. We're hoping for 3 cords to fit in this bad boy. Exciiiiiiting.