36 B

 

The physical address of Birdsong Studio 3.0 is 36B 4th avenue southeast in High River. Think of the word BACK when you see the B after 36. It sits at the back of our property adjacent to a former violin making academy. 

This felt like a huge week of firsts. I finished my first commission in the new studio. I welcomed my first Ideal Protein client into the office. Tonight, with the arrival of slat wall hooks (thank you Amazon!), the first prints and paintings went on the wall.

This week I also rekindled my carpentry skills. Using 8-foot lengths of good-one-side plywood, I built storage shelves for cardboard and canvases. I felt completely out of practice and it took me several hours to get back in the headspace of doing carpentry. My body is feeling it today. I used muscles that I don't normally use. 

As we are expecting heavy rain for the next few days, I found some time to haul gravel using our Gorilla cart to create a pathway from our house, through the vacant lot next store to the studio. This will negate having to cross the water soaked mud bog that gets created after every storm. My body is a little sore from that, too. 

Joe and Doug, the electricians, were able get everything up and wired today including our access point. Now we have full WiFi service out there, which felt absolutely wonderful. Next week baseboard and trim goes in along with various things like doors that need to be hung. 

The end feels so much closer. I can begin to see how this space will be used for creating things and for hosting special events and exhibitions. I can easily see an artist renting the Bird's Nest and giving them the access code to the studio so they can come and go as they please during their stay. I can see painting experiences, art tours and so much more. I can see Heather finding her abstract groove on the west end of the studio while I plug away in my little painting corner on the east side. It's truly all coming into focus.

I appreciate the team back at SEED Homes world headquarters in southeast Calgary. I was feeling considerable angst earlier this week and they jumped into action to make things better. The stress, anxiety and frustration has come in unpredictable waves through this process. I'm grateful to Adrien and Stephen for being trusted listeners when I have needed to vent. 

Alyssa (project manager) and Ralf (construction manager) assure us that we are in the dwindling few weeks of construction. By early July, we should be substantially complete.