Construction is over, but not really
The majority of the main building is done as well as the basement. Now we just have to get the stairs, windows, doors and glass in and the structure is complete. We’ve added a higher wall separating our property from next door. The stairs to the second floor are the biggest thing still to come. We’ve been climbing up a ladder for so long now we’re tired of it. It’ll be nice to have some real stairs. Once those are done, there’s still bed frames, cabinets, closets, shower curtains, move the bookcases up, etc….. the end is near but still seemingly nowhere in sight. It’s a huge relief to not have a 3 to 4 man crew here Monday to Friday. It’s been since May and that team is as relieved to be finished as we are. It was a long project. The remainder is being done by different glass workers and carpenters. And painting. And installing locks. Where’d that list go?
Cujo’s Great-grandpuppy?
There’s a large scary looking dog just down the road from us, it barks at and chases Tali, Gandalf, and other dogs. We have no idea who it belongs to if anyone. She’s just mean and larger than most dogs in the area and we’ve always been cautious of it as we’ve seen it get violent with other dogs. One day it decided to ignore the dogs and charge straight at Malena. Scaring the hell out of her and causing her to fall. She was carrying a stick and was flailing at it trying to scare the dog away. Thankfully injuries were minimal but could have been worse, few bumps and bruises, including a large one on her leg the shape of a scorpion from landing on the curb. Stiff for a few days and difficulty moving. Thankfully the beast didn’t keep coming. But we’re even more wary of this particular dog now more than ever.
Spider Sense
Spiders are our friendly neighbourhood OH BLOODY HELL GET AWAY FROM ME!!! They’ll appear seemingly at random in the worst possible places, from our doorknobs to inside the shower. The scariest aren’t a spider of any particular size or type, but the ones that know we are watching. They’ll be creeping along, minding their own business, we’ll be working along, minding our own business. Boom, eye contact. We stop, it stops, we slowly back away, it slowly backs away. The moment we look away it bolts. That awareness is terrifying in something with so many legs and clawed mandibles. Now imagine if they had opposable thumbs…..
Sandalball
So Gandalf decided to play with one of Roger’s sandals. Minor chewing aside it’s not too damaged but to show her she shouldn’t be chewing shoes, Roger tried to make some noise by hitting the gate with it, be loud show you’re in trouble etc…. Well he managed to miss an 8 metre wide and 2 metre high door, sail it clear overtop, and land it in the neighbours front yard. This is why Roger never played baseball. We used a hockey stick to collect it from between the bars of their front gate. While Roger went in, Malena was a lookout in case any people thought we were trying to break into our neighbours. They would probably be so confused by a hockey stick. And yes both of us brought ours down, along with our Canadian Tire red hockey ball. Once construction is cleaned up and before we add grass, a match will have to happen.
Business number, the “RUC”
We have our business number! This is the first step in a whole lot of more work but still exciting. Next up is getting the brewery operational under that number, making business cards, labels, and getting our name and beers out there while balancing the hostel side and getting in our first guests!
Muyu & Caran
Muyu is a great little brewery in Otavalo that just opened up their own brew pub so we decided to drop in on opening night. Good music, food and brews, it’s a cozy spot in the owners backyard. Very charming little spot in a quiet area of Otavalo. Their Dark (Negra) is particularly good with the nachos, which was topped with some of the best guacamole we’ve had since moving here.
Another brewery in Imbabura, Cava Caran had a mini Oktoberfest at their brewpub in Otavalo with beer deals and a band playing. It was cool to escape the construction for a while and enjoy their creative brews.
Brewing & Pickling
With the majority of construction done there is a little more time to get a few more things done and take advantage of having two kitchens, albeit in various states of disrepair. Batches of blonde ale, dark lager and IPA have been brewed for taste-testing (not too shabby but some more tweaks are needed). We’ve got malt tests in the works, and a Saison bubbling away with a Stout in plans very soon. Shelving is being built, food is being pickled (everything but actual pickles, go figure), and we should be able to start using the fermentation basement soon. Once Roger gets the pulley system and ladder in place that is.
All Souls Day in memory of Athena
Halloween isn’t really a huge deal down here. What happens instead is on November 2nd you have All Souls Day. It’s a day each year where everyone gets together to clean the graves of past loved ones, place flowers, spend time together reflecting, eating these funny looking breads with icing made to look like people. Athena died on May 24, 2017. We buried her in the backyard and placed a small marker over her. We had to move her during construction due to the backhoe possibly digging up and destroying her place. We had no real plans for November 2, but took the day off from business to relax, clean around her grave, place flowers and a new marker, have a couple beers under the gazebo. It was hard not to cry, so we did.
On a happier note here is a baby goat!
