Winter Hardy Souls

The builder of our project in Osterville, MA sent me photos the other day to show the gable walls standing at this roughly 3,500 square foot house that we designed and that he is right now building.

It is another gambrel design, and the principal facade draws strongly from our project in Chatham, MA that was completed a few years ago.  However, that’s about the only thing that emulates the Chatham house.  This project is entirely unique in every other aspect, including a strategy for complying with FEMA regulations by, among other provisions, elevating the first floor above the flood plain.

But while these photos bring views on the builder’s progress, they bring a frigid shiver as well.  Winter in the northeast has been especially brutal this year; those of us here can attest to that.  Those who can attest most convincingly, I think, are those hardy souls who work outside in these temperatures and snowscapes.  These guys in particular have my appreciation and gratitude for their outdoor efforts.  Wind chills are so much more harsh (and dangerous) when you are spending your day on an open air platform that is elevated so much higher above the ground plane.

Looking at these photos, it’s funny to recall that these kinds of shingle style houses are often categorized as the “architecture of the American summer”.  How I yearn for that roof line to cut its profile against a summer sky.