A Titanic-Sized WHEW!
So, y’all know that the Cross House received two Heritage Trust grants. This was to enable:
- Shingling all the secondary roofs.
- Relining the built-in gutters.
- Restoring 43 stained-glass windows.
- Replacing rotted sills.
- Restoring lost siding in NE corner.
- Restoring tower finial.
- Recreating lost octagon tower finial.
- Restoring many of the clear-glass windows.
- Replacing most of the wood shingles on the south facade.
- Restoring/Recreating 8 columns on the south side.
- Painting the south facade.
While work on the first grant went basically as expected, the second grant became overwhelmed when a small project became a HUGE project, as detailed here. Because this took sooooooooooooo much time, there was not enough time to finish another line item: painting the south facade. “Painting” sounds easy enough but before such work can begin there first needs a ton of repair work to be accomplished, as detailed here.
So, for months now I have stressing out as every week the May 31st deadline loomed every closer. Closer. Closer. Closer.
I’m freakin’ out, man! Freakin’ out!
Then, the whole world fell apart, ramping up my stress levels to massive levels.
Then, because of the above, my sales largely vanished, ramping up my stress levels to titanic-sized levels.
I’m freakin’ out, man! Freakin’ out!
I thought that the only solution would to just forgo all the repair work and just slap paint on the south facade. Which goes against everything I believe in. Part of what fuels me is doing things right. When I do good work, I become inspired and want to continue working. When I do bad work I became deflated and lose all interest in what I am doing.
Finally, I wrote the grant administrator and asked if the grant could be amended to reflect a small project becoming a massive project, and to reduce the painting required to JUST the second floor.
And I sent this email out.
Every day since I have been constantly checking my emails. Had an answer arrived? Had it? Would it? What if the answer was no? My mind reeled.
I knew the grant office was closed because of, well, you know, so maybe an answer would take a month. Geez, could my nervous system survive another month of Not Knowing?
Then…at 2:05PM today…I received an answer. “Sure. We can do that.”
My heart sang so loudly that you might have heard it?
In short:
- The massive reshingling project will get partially compensated.
- I will not have to paint the entire four-story facade, but only finish the painting of the second-floor (the area to the western side).
During this era of extraordinary upheaval, stress, illness, and death, it seems a miracle to receive not just good news, but great news.
17 Comments
Leave a Reply Cancel Reply
Your email address will NEVER be made public or shared, and you may use a screen name if you wish.
Hi Ross. I feel so happy for you!!!
As you know, most, if not all businesses at this time, have been shuttered. I’m in the hospitality industry so, you guessed it, I have had nothing for about a month now. I am very shortly going to be out of money (talk about at wits end!!)
I have enjoyed “escaping” to your house every single day! “Listening” to your wit, wisdom and know how has been a VERY welcome respite for me to dream about and live vicariously through! I want to take this moment to, even though I have never met you, to give you a big hug and say thank you! God has always been there for me and, now, in this most trying of times, I’m trusting in Him. He’s brought me through MANY things.
So, I’ll keep writing and commenting as long as I can. You have been a VERY bright spot in my world these days and I wish the VERY best for you!. I DO pray that I can come and pay you a visit one of these days and enjoy your home and all your hard work!!! Man, that would be SOOOOOO fun! 🤗😁👍
Good news, indeed! A rare instance of sanity in an insane world. Congratulations! As a wise friend of mine once told me, “If you don’t ask, you don’t get!”
Yay! I am so thankful! I thought there was hope of help for this change in the projected work, when you originally applied and received Heritage Grants. This is the best & most wonderful news! So very happy for the rekeas3 of tha5 enormous load of worry! Yay! Yay! Yay!
Good Lord! Should say…”release of that”….instead of those odd words!
It is so good to hear some good news these days, and that it happened for you, Ross, makes it even better. 😆😀
Hahaha had to stop and decipher “rekeas3”, Sandra Lee. Thanks for clarifying it.
Group hug to this wonderful news from the Grant Administrator!
That’s awesome!!! Such a relief and how great to here good news! Very happy for you!
Well deserved.
Great news! The grant administration know what they have in you as do all of us that are following along everyday on your adventures at Cross House.
I look forward to hearing from you and the cats each day. Thank you for your fun and for your most human revelations of life.
Whew! – indeed. 🍀 What a relief it will be for you to NOT have to play “beat the clock”, Ross.
🎉 Congratulations! 🎊
Contending with the weather is enough of a hassle but, 100 years of gathered “surprises” has got to be the most difficult challenge to pile onto a deadline. Now, no more hurry, hurry, hurry. A less hectic mindset can foster more a creative and beautiful world.
Go Ross! 💜
OH, that is great news. You are so fortunate to have the Kansas Heritage Grant program. That organization is seriously interested in preserving history and heritage in our state. So glad they are willing to work with you, although how could they not, given your obviously serious efforts to preserve the Cross House. Good things happen to good people and you are certainly proof of that.
I’m so happy you can now exhale and get on with your work. And thank you for being a bright spot in so many lives right now. You have no idea how much this blog means to so many people.
Agree!
As someone who works as a grant administrator (in the medical field, and good lord are we busy right now – sooo much new research coming in, which is a good thing! Let’s cure this thing!) you have exceptionally good reasons to amend the terms of your grant !! 🙂
I’m so very, very happy to hear this. Good on you for asking. My motto is: “If I don’t ask, you can’t say YES.”
That’s good news Ross, and sounds like you really needed some. Sounds like the Kansas Heritage Grant program is very accommodating and easy to work with. You can continue on with your excellent work.
Hello, I have a built in gutter system in my metal cornice. I notice you listed that you are having your gutters relined. What process and who did you utilize to complete this task?