Porch - Day 2, fire

Today was a kind of weird day, where I felt a bit "off" emotionally and everyone else seemed to be grouchy or quiet or anxious. Fortunately it seemed to pass after about mid-day.
Yesterday during the start of the trials of the porch rafters I built a starter rafter as a template and then a handsome beetle came and alighted upon it and would not leave despite our prodding and coaxing. Terran and I decided he was a special insect associated with building and named him "Template Bug". Later Brendon came around and told us he was a northern pine beetle, responsible for decimating forests of the North East.
Well. "Template Demon Bug from Hell" is perhaps a better name. I tore through 4 or 5 planks trying to figure the proper cut and angles for rafters, and didn't get it right. I even tried bringing in the CAD software out to the cabin to figure the cuts for me and still failed to get it right. Finally I was reduced to the Medieval practice of scribing a copy of the profile from an available edge, and that worked OK.

After all this the porch roof *finally* assented to being built. I spent more hours on the rafters for the porch than I did for the entire remainder of the roof. Pictured here is Terran tidying up after one of my disasters. Clearly there's more for me to learn of the secrets of rafter framing on twisted/bent/warped beams and girders.
While Terran and I grappled with rafters, Mischa and Brendon finished the footers for cabin #3, and Roger framed up the girders and posts for #2. Despite the rafter woes things are still moving along. Here's a picture of the sheathed & decked #1. I'm off this site now, on to #2.

With the roof on #1 decked it was time to move the center of operations to #2, and I spent the afternoon trying to get electricity set up for the new site, eventually tracing my troubles to a dead circuit breaker. Here's a shot of the beginnings of #2 rising from the earth.

The weather was odd in keeping with much of the rest of the day. The breezes were fitful, and blew hot and cold. The mosquitoes were bold and thick, the sun burned me and blinded me. A forest fire started to the West and sullied the horizon with dirty clouds. But in the end it was a good day, I had a great talk with the three new hermits and a fine dinner with Roger and now off to bed.