Reminiscing

My own interest in building first began when I began working for RONA, it was a summer job, (three-summer job, actually) in one of the smallest RONA stores in Toronto, converted to RONA from Lansing build-all the first year I worked there. It was situated in a house owned by Mr. Kitchen, a gentleman who owned a fair bit of land in that area of Willowdale for quite some time. Elements of its history remain, as the storage area behind the building looks remarkably like a barn, on the inside and out. Where I lost out on that job was that I did not take the initiative to create a system to manage inventory on a store-wide scale. My unyielding attention to my education also hindered that focus on hardware. Oh well.

On to the next chapter, I have begun to volunteer for Habitat for Humanity, where I have basked in the opportunity to experience first hand many elements of building a house on-site. These experiences range from installing sub-flooring in washrooms, to creating bulkheads for washrooms, installing stair landings (yeah pneumatic nailers!), framing windows, and, inevitably, painting.

These experiences, as well as my interaction with a few architects through university, has sparked my interest in architecture, ranging from spec drawings, to framing, to painting and tile installation, and it’s interesting to be a part of building houses from different angles, and to continue to learn about architecture.