The end of the beginning

The building code inspector came out on Monday for the "final" visit and flagged us for a dozen issues, from a broken emergency light (which we knew about) to all of the shower lines being reversed (which we didn't know about). Dawn has taken care of everything and so we expect to get our occupancy permit tomorrow, after the inspector's "final, final" visit.

Our grand opening weekend went very well, with over 500 people attending. (At least, that's how many signed our guest book.) Matt, Terry, Louise, Josh, Ben, and Beverly did an amazing job managing the parking and shuttle service, and deserve a lot of kudos. In fact, the only foul-up of the entire day was mine: I made 100 copies of the "tour guide," and we ran out within an hour. Everyone else just got to see the results, without getting any context, but I think they appreciated it anyway.

I've got eight reservations so far, including three this weekend, so we're getting ready for the next stage. It's not the "second half" because we've still got a lot to do--finish the Paymaster's Office and privy, landscape, clean up the barn, stabilize the Stallion Pen, etc. Caring for a place like this is truly a neverending task.

But right now we're in the eye of the storm, as it were, with only a couple of contractors, and after the last two weeks of chaos, everything seems kind of serene. Last night I hooked up my stereo and played some of my dad's vinyl records--that may seem quaint, but I find it very relaxing. So relaxing, in fact, that I fell asleep in my office and slept there overnight. Don't tell the building inspector, though, since we don't have our occupancy permit yet.

Elijah, who helped get everything ready for the grand opening