Carnegie Library in Pierce, Nebraska

In researching the history of our very own Carnegie Library, we ran across another in a nearby town that was built in the same year as ours. In an effort to save the Pierce library from demolotion, some residents took it upon themselves to set up a foundation to preserve and maintain the historic building. Last Saturday afternoon we ventured to Pierce to see their progress and share some renovation horror stories and successes. It's nice to meet other people who share a passion for preserving historic architecture. Check out their website if you get a chance.

www.piercenebraska.info/carnegie/piercecarnegie.htm

Commentary on Today's Work Ethic

We have enountered several individuals and companies in the past year while remodeling. Some have been great; they're timely, efficient, honest, and up front in expectations such as the manner in which work is performed and the cost of said work. Unfortunately, in some cases (too many already and we're not even close to being done with subcontractors) I have been quite disappointed in workmanship, response time, and general business ethics. As a teacher of the future workforce of America I worry about the lack of work ethic in today's society. Accountability and a sense of pride in one's work is lacking. I see many of my students asking, "How can I make a quick buck and not really work?" It's frustrating and from my experiences this is a national and possibly global problem. Perhaps my efforts are futile in the classroom but I hope to instill in my students (and own children) a solid work ethic, the desire to be life-long learners, and excellence in any task they dare to endeavor.

So here's hoping we find those conscientious contractors and maybe someday I can hire some of my former students. (HA! This project better be done by then!)

Tuckpointers are Here!

Our biggest project is now underway. The tuckpointers showed up last week and have already finished grinding out all the bad spots and are in the process of filling the joints with new mortar. The chimney was practically knocked down and reassembled it was in such bad shape. There was no mortar left so all they had to do was lift the bricks off. We used the original blueprints to try and rebuild the chimney to look similar to the original. The large limestone layers were missing so we put two back in.
These tuckpointers hail from Bosnia and are working very long days. I wish I could spend more time watching them in their trade, cutting the limestone, matching the original mortar, laying brick. One of the most enjoyable aspects of this whole renovation is learning about different trades and meeting different people. This reminds me of a quote by a French poet that I first heard from a Colonel I highly respected... "By the work one knows the workman."

Creating the New Bathroom Spaces

Over the weekend I knocked down the last of the plaster walls for the new spaces upstairs. The 14ft walls proved to be a bigger challenge than the 9ft walls downstairs...and a much bigger mess! This space will eventually be the master bath and part of a powder room. Once we figure the exact dimensions of the new bathrooms we can remove the wood flooring which will be used to patch other areas upstairs, and replace the space with tile. The bedroom, kitchen, and living room will retain the original oak floors.