Our story so far: After months of demolition, framing and mechanicals, spring arrived at the church we were turning into our home, and we looked forward to the next phase: Drywall, Paint & Flooring.

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The final task Tyler completed before the drywall was hung was to install the front doors. Remember? The doors for the man’s home that is his castle? We’d purchased them off Craig’s List months ago now, and they were stored in the basement, awaiting their final home. Initially, we thought we’d wait until everything else was finished, but Tyler thought it better to let the drywallers work around the castle doors, rather than pull apart their careful work later only to do it again.

The enormous arched door frame was so large, we couldn’t fit through the basement door, so it had been moved around the sanctuary fifteen times while various contractors worked around it. Now Tyler pulled off the exterior siding on the front entryway, and You-Can-Call-Me-Al helped him slide the door frame into place. Tyler’s hired man St. Johnny helped hang the heavy doors in the frame, and You-Can-Call-Me-Al performed the required cosmetic surgery so they swung smoothly.

All winter and early spring, the only evidence of any activity inside the church was the string of pickup trucks parked outside of it. Now, the whole world could see a hint of the transformation in store for the rest of the structure.

Our rustic castle doors with operational speakeasy portals were absolutely the perfect doors for the church. Even before we put back the siding and installed the exterior lights or even door handles, we earned compliments from friends and passing strangers on this exceeding public design choice.

They made me so happy.

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Tomorrow: Drywall delivery day. Read about it here.