Construction Update
Have you ever had that moment where everything suddenly seems to fall together and what was previously just a collection of random pieces becomes a coherent whole? That moment when the scene right in front of you suddenly takes on shape and meaning? There was not much down on the table, just the chalked lines marking the outline of Wall Panel #11, the blocks used to create a frame, and the first two LVLs (Laminated Veneer Lumber). Conceptually I knew that I was standing in a barn, building a wall panel, and I could have read the dimensions of all of the pieces of wood off the shop drawing, but suddenly I looked at the table and saw the real proportions of what we were building. I saw the 14″ thick walls and the 13′ high ceilings. For the first time I saw past my vague impression of the wall panel as the little, flat piece of the house it seemed to be on the plans. We were building something that I will actually be able to stand inside. I still cannot believe it.
For the most part, I work specifically with InSite’s Education team. Although I have had a chance to see some of the plans, I spend the majority of my time working on the team discussing the concept of InSite and looking at fully formed renderings. The large stack of shop drawings has rarely been of any concern to me. This Sunday I gained a completely new perspective of the project. We took the design apart and put a section of it together; we started with a pile of miscellaneous types of wood and ended with a structure that I will eventually be able to stand next to and lean against. Until Sunday, in my mind this project was still on the same scale as the models we build with local elementary school students. Suddenly this adventure has become real. I cannot wait to share this new perspective at future education events.
