Sunday, March 7, 2010 The Barn Whisperer

After we woke from our nap, we checked on the babies again and watched them for awhile.
Later in the afternoon "The Barn Whisperer" came. He is a buddy of mine from work named Mike. He is from good ol' Kentucky and when he lived there he was a barn straightener. I'm not sure how you put that on a business card, but I have a barn, and some of it's sagging, so I figured a visit from my friend Mike wouldn't hurt! So Mike showed up around noon with his wife Cheryl, and 5 year old daughter AB. I immediately showed them our new children, and AB just loved them! She started moving her arms in the air and said she was teaching them to fly. :)
We drove down to the back of the property and I gave them a brief tour...What needs to be fenced, the pasture, the creek, where the raised beds are going to go, yes that little colosseum over there is really a firepit, and last but not least, my quaint little barn. Cheryl and AB went to check out the huge trampoline that My Mariah no longer finds cool, (there is no where for her to plug in her ipod or cell phone), and Mike and I toured the barn. Now he didn't actually whisper to it...didn't caress the old boards and listen to their story....He kind of put his hands on his hips in a Mike kind of way and layed it out matter of factly. He told me that it was a lot better off than he thought...good...good...and that the tack room P and I were turning into the chicken coop would be perfect for them. He pointed out a few places that would be ideal for extra post support and that I needed to move the dirt away from the base of the barn to keep the wood from rotting again. We then walked around the side and he looked at the roof. Now I've worked with Mike for about 4 years now, off and on, and I know that look he got on his face. The sag in the roof wasn't good. He told me that if I got another 2 feet of snowfall like I did in the winter of '08, the barn may not hold up. So he proceeded to instruct me on how to fix it. Pull off those 2x4s, replace them with 2x6s, make supports every 4 feet instead of about every 8...jack it up if necessary...etc. I looked Mike square in the eye and said, "Be straight with me Mike, is this something Patty and I can fix, or do I need to hire someone?" He replied we could do it without a doubt...(Mike could never lie, and I knew he would have told me it was beyond my means if he thought it was.)
Cheryl and AB came back from the trampoline, and Mike took AB to check out the abandoned loft while Cheryl and I reflected about how sweet life and it's mysterious and not so mysterious blessings are. I then gave them a tour of the future goat pen, and showed them one of my favorite trees on the property. It blew over several years ago, and the whole root base now extends toward the sky. We then walked the creek and it was time to head back up to the house.
I showed them my other prized treasure...My 1953 GMC pickup. It's not running right now...but she's a beauty and I have big plans for her...(when life slows down a little.) We came to the conclusion that when she is all fixed up and painted cherry red, I am going to drive her in the local parade with Mike, Cheryl and AB in back!
One more look in on the chicks and my company had to go...
Thanks again Mike, Cheryl and AB! Come back again real soon!!!