Count down, week 4.

Tidying up

It’s getting close now and the store is really looking like a store.  We are down to the wrapping up and tidying up phase of that space while construction screams toward its finish line in the kitchen area and the middle room with the public restroom is being finished this week-end. Click on any image to enlarge it and scroll through.

It’s the final minutia of any project that seems to take the most time.  That little spot of ceiling paint dripped on the wall that needs touching up, the exposed pipe that needs brush work, the sanding and refinishing of the front of the cabinets, the deep scrubbing of every rack and shelving unit [thank you Mindy and Debbie]!  The complete refinishing of the inside of the big beer and milk cooler [thank you Constance, Janet, Claire, Mindy and Kevin], the sanding and painting of every inch of trim work [thank you Claire and thank you me], leveling floors, washing windows, repairing of walls, painting and repainting.  And meeting with farmers, vendors and artisans, testing food & drinks…you get the idea. Click on any image to see them larger.

And Bob continues with his electrical work wiring the whole building while keeping me happy by installing light fixtures; are these the right height?  Can Jim stand under them?  Are the lights adjusted to the right temperature to make the room seem inviting?  Do the cases have a shadow?  We have started from scratch installing energy efficient LED lighting removing the old costly florescent that was previously there.

Dave has built the huge riser for the front of the store that was my vision. While it was in progress we heard the jokes; it’s a hot tub, it’s a stage for Jane’s dance routine…humor is what keeps us all going!  And the little gifts brought our way keep us going too; the flowers, the fresh squash from the garden, a loaf of bread…thank you to everyone.  We love you back. Click on any image to see them larger.

A bit of history

Part of the fun of this store project is to dig into Canterbury History.  The colors in a building tell a story. When we were sanding the big ‘ol door to the beer and milk cooler to repaint it, we revealed several layers of color going back to other store owners.  We haven’t yet figured out what colors went with who but it went gray, then red, then medium green then forest green most recently.  We loved the red so much that we decided to keep some of it exposed and use it for a jumping off point to finish off that middle room where the coke machine sits and where the public restroom is.  Click on any image to see them larger.

And other history, stayed tuned: Steve, Sue and Chance are working on two accents for the store using wood salvaged from the Guertin barn and some 1700’s timber!!

Keeping things crisp in the kitchen

Conversations in the store recently about bread made me think to pass on these tips.  Food that you want to stay crisp should be stored in paper and food that you want to stay soft stores ok in plastic.

• Artisan breads with a crisp oven-kissed crust should always be stored in paper. They sweat in plastic and the crust gets destroyed.  If it gets too hard after a few days in your paper bag, spritz the crust with water and put in a 300 degree oven for 5 or 10 minutes to freshen it up; it tastes fresh baked.
• Soft, squishy sandwich breads last longer in plastic bags.
• Vegetable greens should be stored in paper, never long term in plastic bags.  The plastic gases off a chemical that deteriorates the composition of the produce and the lack of air coupled with moisture makes it sweat encouraging decomposition.  When I get my greens home I take them out of the plastic bag and roll them up in paper towels to then store in the vegetable drawer of the frig.  They literally last for weeks.

Thanks for reading, Jane (and Dave)