Adaptability

Adaptability  - adapt and ability "to fit (something, for some purpose)," from Middle French adapter (14c.), from Latin adaptare "adjust," from ad- "to" + aptare "to join," from aptus "fitted" Meaning "to undergo modification so as to fit new circumstances" 

Adaptability also implies not giving up! Instead of just walking away or tossing the whole thing out, it involves trying to work with what you've got and who you've got to work with. 

Basically you try to fit in, and you make the stones you have fit in too. 

You don't have a hissy fit either.

Resolve

It is only through labor and painful effort, by grim energy and resolute courage, that we move on to better things. 
Theodore Roosevelt

Integrity

A dry stone wall (like any other dry laid structure) will likely fall down in a short time if the one who builds it lacks integrity, because integrity is something that needs to be built into a wall. Whether they utilize stones that go all the way though is not the issue.

The word 'through' is closely related to the word 'thorough'. (In fact until early modern English the two words weren't even clearly differentiated).

The meaning had to do with being completely and entirely done from 'end to end' and 'side to side'

To thoroughly stone a wall is to have its length and depth made entirely of good workmanship. If the person building it is being as thorough as 'possible' it will be done right. It is quite possible to do a proper job 'throughout' even if throughstone material is scarce or missing .

By contrast seeing a wall that obviously has throughstones in it, doesn't imply that the builder has done a 'thorough' job. (Nor does the fact they've used a lot of them mean they've been somehow more thorough)

The point is - all the stones in a wall are 'through stones', if the wall has indeed been built 'thoroughly'. 

I've seen enough evidence to conclude that the walls a scoundrel or a blaggard builds, no matter what their credentials, or how many throughstones they use, will always lack integrity.

The Four Throughstones

The four throughstones in the Wall of Life are - 

Integrity, Resolve, Adaptability, and Wonder. 

You are only fooling yourself if you're building without them. 

Walling By Number

Moving a stone building (or in this case a stone boat) stone by stone, is not something to be taken on lightly. The chances of having all the stones fit back together properly are slim. Once a couple stones get put in the wrong place, or worse, go missing, the whole integrity of the original structure is compromised. 

Below is the procedure we will be using to best tackle the moving of the Farley Mowat Boat Roofed House the week of our Canadian Thanksgiving here in Port Hope Ontario. 

I suspect accurately reproducing this dry stone structure at its new site near the Ganaraska River will be more difficult than building it the first time. Built ten years ago, both as as a tribute to our good friend the Canadian author Farley Mowat, and as a replication of an example of first millennia dry stone walling in Canada, the monument when moved to its new home, will get the recognition and acclaim it deserves. 

The datum line approach will be used for documenting the positions and order of the stones.  It is low tech and reasonably accurate. 

Heritage masonry professor John Scott, who will be working with us on the project, explains how we will go about it

"The boat runs north-south along Catherine Street, so we pick a distance, say ten feet to the east, and create a straight NS line. The line needs to be at the same elevation as the boat grade. This is our datum. We then divide the line into equal parts, say, two feet apart, then measure the distance from the line (at right angles) and record these distances.  At the new location we make a new datum line in the appropriate direction and establish the same distances along the same intervals. This will give the curve of the east side of the boat.  For the west side, from the same datum line we can measure a new twin line on the west side of the boat, say 20 feet from the datum.. this new line will be parallel to the first one. Then we divide this new line into similar equal parts and measure eastward to the boat.. this will give the location of the west curve.

To establish the actual location of each stone, we will use a the method of establishing a right angle from the datum at the bow of the boat, then measuring from this line to the right side of each major stone (because it’s a curve, this will be a sliding measure)… however, if we follow the footprint closely, the stones will tell us where they need to be!

The slope/batter of the ends should be recorded and recreated with a template attached to a long level in plumb position.

When we record each stone, we should take accurate photos that show the stonework clearly.  I like to make a drawing of the stone, however there is a neat software that makes this much easier.. designed by Bobby Watt’s excellent crew!  

Anyway, the drawing should show each stone.. because it is roughly coursed, I would start at the right side of the photo and number each with a code that makes sense, such as E-1-3 (for east wall, first course, third stone from the right).  For more random areas, use something like, E-1-3a, b, and c (to show that there are three rogue random stones in that area of the course, and you would refer to the drawing to sort out where they belong).  

Before we remove each stone, use an appropriate marker or paint to label each stone.. label the top of the stone such that you can read it if standing in front of it.. this way you can tell which way is up and left-right when it goes back together.  I like to take an extra step an mark the face of each stone with chalk before the dismantling begins.. just in case the stone collapses during the upper dismantling.. for example, when the boat is raised.  The chalk code also gives a confident certainty when labelling the tops during dismantle.  

Then the stones should be grouped together, for example, each course should be grouped in one skid or group of skids so they can easily be located during the rebuild. We would normally keep track of the elevation heights however as there is no mortar I suspect this will be less of an issue."

We Change

We change.

We draw our bow slower but our aim has gotten better.

We have learned how to be in the company of people but are more comfortable now being alone .

We know what we have done doesn't need to be explained 

or defended.

It has already begun to stand the test of time.

And this requires only one thing - change.

So many things have not allowed for this,

- things we need not bother with.

They are all temporary and woefully unchanging in nature. 

And doubt, a constant stream,

continues to pass under the arch. 

But it, the arch, stands as a reminder of who we are becoming.

It is the gateway 

to allow everything that can't or won't change to go through and vanish...

Ours is the open portal, sure and changeable.

See the Trailer

 It's way better than being stuck in one of those fancy new mortar homes.

The Many Times and Ways the Stones Get Stacked on the Irish Tower Project

A unique deposit of quartzitic schist in the Mojave Desert of Southern California is quarried by Sydney Peak Stone.

First it's gathered and stacked this way.

At Sydney Peak Qarry

Then it's stacked this way on pallets and shipped to Gualala

Then it's 'trial stacked' dry laid this way, before it's lime mortared.

To see how it fits around the trunk of the tower.

Then its stacked and wet laid this way in a special hot lime mortar

To make a permanent masonry structure

And after cutting it up and shaping of a lot more of it.

Many tons of it is dry stacked again in a preliminary cone shape in preparation for the roof assembly

And then dry stacked once more !

To create the tower roof - all dry laid !

Thanks to Amanda Stinson for the last photo

Docks and Rocks

Maybe I think too much about rocks. Coming down to the dock in the early morning last week seeing this beautiful scene I thought again about the importance of rocks  

For me the essential thing that makes this kind of tranquility even possible is not mist, it's what lies below. Under the calm surface of the lake below the dock are carefully placed rocks sleeping in a crib of timbers.

Timbers without stones would just float away. Docks without rocks would float away too if they weren't tied to the shore.

Rocks and stones are the unsung underwater underpinning of many of the best most permanent docks and warfs.

They may be wet but they're still dry laid.

Next time you dive off a dock think about it.

---------------

I had many alternative titles for this post. 

Here's a few that maybe would be just as good?

Stone Warfing 

Safe in their Crib

(Between the Railway Sleepers)

Sinking with my Hands

Stacking the Dock

 A base of Rock

for Rock Bass to hide in

Anchor management - Just Try to Get a Crib

The Walls at the Falls

This photo is connected to the link below to a recent article in the St Catharines Standard about the dry stone walls along the Niagara Parkway near Queenstown Ontario. There are some beautiful and very historic walls there, some of which are in mint condition. 

http://www.stcatharinesstandard.ca/2016/08/26/search-engine-stone-wall-for-the-ages

A few sections of the Parkway walls that have been damaged by vehicles or trees have been repaired either during Dry Stone Walling Across Canada workshops (in conjunction with Willowbank School of Restoration Arts Willowbank /DSWAcrossC Workshop ) or as private restoration projects. 

Mark Ricard, John Bland (two excellent Canadian wallers) and I cheerfully worked together to bring this wall back to its former glory.  

Still Life

I had been pondering long enough now. It was time to put brush to paper and try to paint a stone so that it looked convincingly like a stone. I chose the perfect one from a small pile of rocks on the beach, near the dock, and held it in my hand. 

He did not like being picked up. Having woken from a deep sleep, he still remained completely motionless. He felt stiff everywhere. Lying awkwardly on his side for so long in the sand had left him feeling cold and numb. As he sat up in my hand, the morning light began to warm the upper part of his form. His pink and grey granite exterior relaxed against my hand. My skin felt smooth against his rough weathered surface.

He looked round. He rolled onto his back and then over into my other hand. There was not really that much to see. He didn’t feel different either. He reflected quietly. 

Sparkles of gneiss and flecks of mica glistened above the dark patch where the dampness from the wet sand he’d been lying in (for who knows how long) had started to disappear. No wonder he felt stiff.

He needed to stretch. Feeling heavier now too, he needed to be put down. Plonk.

He sat there on the dock waiting as I got out my paint brush, dipped it into my jar of water and excitedly began mixing colours. Nothing seemed to move him. In fact he remained perfectly still the whole time I tried to paint him - the ideal artist’s model. 

In the end I think he got bored and went back to sleep.

When I was finished painting I was a bit disappointed he showed no interest to see what I'd done. He probably wouldn’t have liked it anyway. I decided to leave him there warming in the sun.

In the end I think I did manage to get a bit of his likeness on paper. 

But still, I would have liked to have captured a bit more life in the painting. 

Slowing down to a snails pace creatively.

Certain species of snails are known to 'cluster' on grass stems, fence posts and stone walls in order to ‘aestivate', away from predators on the ground.

While it may be sudden and unexplainable we need to accept any strange cessation of our creatively as perhaps the muses way of insisting we take time to brood. Not get moody and grumpy but recognize that sometimes there needs to be a period of gestation. There are times when the most creative thing we can do is wait.

Even so, sometimes this creative incubation period can be worryingly way too long. We fret. We think we have dried up for good. Those of us who build walls without mortar get a kind of waller’s block. The source of our inspiration seems to have jammed up. We are up against the wall. Stranded between a rock and a hard place. 

What we need is perspective. We need to see that there is potential waiting in the dry seed of our imagination’s dormancy. There is often a recharging going on. It can't be rushed. There should be no reason for discouragement.  Everything on the earth takes regular periods of rest over a 24 hour cycle. And many plants and animals take much longer pauses. 

My current dryness seems like a kind of mental 'æstivation' (from Latin: aestas, summer) It is a state of dormancy, similar to hibernation, characterized by inactivity and a lowered metabolic rate, that is entered in response to high temperatures and arid conditions.  It takes place at times of heat and dryness which is often during mid summer.

Invertebrate (like snails) and vertebrate animals (like frogs) are known to enter this state for months in order to avoid damage from exposure to excessively hot dry periods and the risk of 'desiccation'. Both terrestrial and aquatic animals undergo aestivation. 

And so creatively, maybe we do too.

Child Support

Kids attending the Landon Bay Nature Camp this August paused on our bridge for a photo.

Named Kay's Bridge in Landon Bay Centre (not far from Rockport, Ontario) this dry stone bridge was built at the yearly Thanksgiving Weekend during Dry Stone Walling Across Canada's 2010 festival.

I suspect the bridge is about the same age as some of the children it's supporting.

Thanks to Margot Miller for the photo.

Watercolour dry stonework.

 

Yesterday after work I tried my hand at painting a section of stonework that we built last year. I was using a new watercolour set we bought last weekend at an art supply store. I love art supply stores.

The trouble is I find it harder to paint stones than build with them. I wish I could figure out the technique for making stones look more real. There are many watercolour artists who are good at it. 

Hmm. I wonder how many artists who are good at painting stonework in watercolour wish they could figure out the technique for making real stonework?

    

Revisiting a project from long ago

Many years ago, my partner Glenn and I built this lovely cottage nestled along the shore of lake Kawagama
We were contracted to build the entire cottage for the clients, including all the squared log work, framing, and trim, along with building the traditional style kitchen cabinetry and all the heritage masonry.
We also did all the hardscaping: steps and small dry laid retaining walls to make getting down to the lake easier and safer for a young family.
What I was mostly interested in seeing after all this time was the old stonework including the steps and retaining walls that I had built there well before I got into dry stone walling full time. Back then — and well before that — I was mostly building with the Devil’s cream creating traditional Rumford fireplaces, squared stone foundations and stone chimneys, often in an authentic random rubble style which is what you can see here at the cottage.

It was gratifying to see how well it all stands up (both wet and dry work) even though it is now so long ago that I barely remember having done any of it.

A Timeless Look

This dry stone planter the students built during a workshop I ran in San Francisco nine years ago is made with the same lovely saucer shaped (some call it 'cow patty' shaped ) stone which we also used to create the Yoni Wall in Gualala (seen below from forty feet up)...

... and again to build the tree-bookended 'Test Wall' . Both walls were completed several years after that original workshop. 

There is something marvellous about this material which the supplier calls Fantasy River Rock from Grass Valley California. 

Unshaped, unworked, undressed stones like these, stacked either vertically or horizontally, convey a powerful feeling of timelessness. The walls feel like they have been there since antiquity.

Too much inflammation ?

While it’s obvious building dry stone walls all day sometimes makes you tired and a bit achy, I’ve had a problem with feeling unusually stiff and very achy for a long time now

so, on the recommendation of a doctor I am experimenting going on a 'gluten free diet'.

I’ve learned that apart from a lot of other disorders, gluten can cause the immune system to literally attack the muscle and joints leading to chronic pain and inflammation.  A prolonged immune system attack contributes to chronic degradation of these tissues and subsequent atrophy of the muscle and arthritis in the joints. 

Sounds like it might just be my problem.

Gluten acts like glue. It is part of the elastic, rubbery protein found in wheat, rye and barley. It binds the dough in baking and prevents crumbling. Gluten can be found in breads, cakes, pastries, cookies, biscuits, crackers, battered foods, cereals, snack foods, pastas and pizza and yes, beer. 

I’m thinking of gluten now as the food counterpart to Portland cement - kind of the equivalent to masonry 'devil’s cream’, only this time it's the 'devil’s glue’, sticking things like bread, pizza and muffins together in a rather unhealthy way.

So now, for the next three months at least, I'll be spending my days walling without mortar and doing without gluten too! 

All's walled that ends walled

We were asked to rebuild an existing badly built dry stone wall using mostly the same material. I call it a petrofit.

Before

Its a beautiful day out there!

Whoever says its a beautiful day out there should try building walls in this weather.

This multi-tiered dry stone wall garden area we created last summer is looking a bit like a deserted archeological site this week. It lies dormant of flora, except for dry grasses. It's still awaiting a massive planting of native flowers and shrubs. But the weather is so dry and hot.

I remember how hot it was when we were building these walls. No shade. The heat was oppressive. The sun's electrical rays zapped us without mercy and sapped us of our energy.

Our chisels were too hot to pick up sometimes. Most of the building material had to be carted up hill and the rocks seemed twice as heavy because of the heat.

We tried to build under our canopies and take breaks and drink lots, but the memory of how tired and hot we got building these walls still lingers.

Working in this week's severe heat reminds me of that project which we started building a year ago about this time.

 I don't like August.

All the yurt's a stage...

And Mark and I were merely players, called in to improve the look of this one here in California.

Here are the various stages. 

- Creating a stone foundation (from scraps and leftovers) for supporting the new deck and stairs we would be building. 

- The fabricating work,  essentially cutting and dressing huge steps from the dry stone academy granite material

- Then supporting exterior dry stonework, stacked decoratively up from grade to the underside of platform slabs

- And finally adding three heavy basalt columns for balance and to give some architectural accent.

Having now successfully circled half of it with stone, exiting and reentering the yurt has a whole new 'atmosphere' to it