A shout-out to Zavitz and foresight

We've been having some electrical work done by Zavitz to make the basement of the church more livable (outlets, ceiling fans, etc.). The Zavitz team has been excellent, hardworking, and skilled at what they do. They even noticed our sump pump needed rewiring and did that without even being asked. They should finish up this week, just in time for the insulation people to come. Once the drywall is in, they'll have to come back to do the final bits (installing lights and switchplates, etc.).

As they were working, my husband wandered the building, thinking ahead to what we may need or want to do in the future. I'm glad he was there to ponder, because he thought of some things I wouldn't have, like a two-way switch so that we can turn the lights on from either side of the room (right now you have to cross the room in the dark) and an outlet for a cooling unit under the stairs for a potential "cold cellar" spot. He is very good at thinking ahead and seeing the whole picture, whereas I get caught up in minutiae and sometimes fail to see the overall plan. Our careers reflect this tendency -- he was a social worker and psychotherapist, helping people with whole-life matters, and I've spent the last thirty-five years proofreading and filing and editing details. And doing needlepoint.

Sometimes the two different approaches can be handy when we work together. For example, we need to put a wired-in smoke alarm in the balcony at the ceiling level, but the lathe-and-plaster walls can't be disturbed. We talked about building a wall beside the staircase, but it's a tricky angle because of the sloping ceiling. A heavy wall couldn't be anchored at the top. We mulled it over a while, tossing ideas around, and came up with the concise solution of a pillar instead of a wall, like a tall post at the end of the stair railing, and I think that will work. It will serve its purpose but also be architecturally interesting, and it will be lighter than a wall so easier to anchor.

It's hard to think ahead to how we might live in the building and what we might need. This process of rezoning has gone on so long that I think I've sort of lost momentum and vision. It's been good to see some actual progress and to think ahead to life in the church. If it ever happens, it will be lovely.