Happy belated Thanksgiving to all of my family and friends. It is a wonderful time of year to simply hang out and veg. I am extremely blessed to have so many great chums. But I am very thankful for a few. They saved the day, and I consider them as my bearded brethren. I will get to them later.
I have mentioned that my father and I are building an addition. Well, consider this the next article of this three-ring circus. I am doing my best to chronicle the entire experience. There is never a dull moment with our project. My daily updates are a viral sensation. Our lack of progress and foolish mistakes are still trending. We are slowly getting there, but everyone is still questioning. The entire neighborhood is outside watching.
We had some delays with our permits. It also didn’t help that my friends are still super busy. My father was hoping to start sooner than later. But unfortunately, we had to push everything to late September. My pops now lives in California. And he has been with us off and on since the beginning. He has helped build a few homes in his day. Rough carpentry. But that was when he was much younger.
In the previous installments, I told you a few stories from our building process. Oh, it has been quite the adventure. The Spencer gals are slowly losing their patience. We head to Lowes on a daily basis. Framing a wall with an upside-down door pushed us back even further. You can’t make it up. We are so bad. But we finally got things moving as we finally found our rhythm over the weekend. Everything was up, and it was now a solid but open structure. We didn’t have time to celebrate as snow and heavy rains were coming. I made one last plea. My friends answered the bell, and they gave me a new appreciation for Thanksgiving.
I have made some new amazing friends while working with rocks. I deal directly with several Amish cabinet builders. They are a true joy, and there is one group in particular — the boys at S and J Woodworking in Montgomery — are spectacular. I visit Sam and Jonas quite often. I now know everyone who works in their shop. They read the Webb Weekly, and they think I am famous. We compare notes and spend a lot of time in deep conversation. We share all kinds of great stories. Fishing and hunting mostly. Don’t let their looks fool you. I always pictured them sitting by a pond using an old can pole — negative folks. My friends have nicer setups than I do. The same goes for hunting. I often joke and say that we need to sign a deal with Netflix.
I love hearing more and more about these guys with every visit. We have gotten to know each other quite well, and we even exchange fishing lures at Christmas. I tend to spoil their children. Every Amish kid needs something from the Mandolorian. My son Jensen has tagged along on many occasions. I enjoy watching him interact, and he, too, is an Amish whisperer. Jensen is so good with the toddlers. He has no problems playing tag or tractor with the youngsters. I wish more kids would get this opportunity. Maybe an Amish Day camp. That could really work. But let’s wait until I hear back from Hulu.
Our trusses have been in the yard since August. My father and I had absolutely no shot at doing this ourselves. We were extremely desperate. Jim had to get back to California soon. We were at a complete standstill. I reached out to Big Jake, who heads up S and J Interiors. I explained the situation. He said that it was definitely a good possibility. Jake told me to reach out to the Bielers. Sam and Jonas also told me that they could probably make something happen. But we are all going hunting in the morning.
The guys showed up on the Monday after Thanksgiving. They put up our trusses and sheathed the roof in less than four hours. It was simply amazing. Jim and I stayed out of the way but offered our services. We exchanged some friendly banter. Big Jake was a hoot, and he is now Jensen’s favorite. I am still buzzing at what they accomplished. My father was there, and he was equally impressed. The conversations and interactions will last a lifetime. I will never forget. Working side by side with my Amish chums was a great experience. No, I wasn’t allowed to take any pictures.
My bearded friends are a true blessing. They constantly remind me to stay humble and keep things simple. They are such impressive and hard-working people. I love hearing more about their faith and traditions. And I also believe that the feeling is mutual. Great stuff, guys. Thank you, Jake, Sam, Jonas, Levi, Daniel Lee, and Melvin. I owe you twenty. I appreciate our friendship, and you boys saved Christmas. Cheers.
