The "Old and the New" or "Before and After"

Everyone loves "before and after"s. At least I sure do! So you will have to bear with me while I spend a few minutes giving you some of our transformations/makeovers.



Peter's been after me to get some new painting runners. I couldn't see spending good money on shoes I knew would hit the garbage as soon as the building was finished. BUT I did finally give in Friday night and bought an inexpensive pair of boys runners to spatter with stain and paint for the final months of this whole big adventure! Before I could change my mind, my old runners (can you guess which ones they were?) were in the dumpster out back. I didn't even have the new ones tied!



OLD


NEW

The "old" in this series of pictures shows the station not long before it's destruction. We aquired a series of pictures from a fellow in Edmonton - Les Kozma. They were invaluable in getting together the final drawings for The Siding 12 Station - as we are now publically known. Our local radio station did a little news blurb saying "we are open for business". And of course the "new" is a pic from the same angle, track side today. Last weekend the "Lacombe" signs were hung and the address sign re-hung. The bright shiny aluminum angle iron holding the signs to the underside of the eaves needed a couple of coats of black paint. That finally got done too so the comparison pictures could be done. One more touch to complete the outside look.

We spent Saturday cleaning the timber trusses upstairs in our offices. With rags in hand and a ladder each we removed the painters tape that had been on them for almost two months. Not a time period I would recommend! But they cleaned up really well and once they were caulked with a nice dark brown flexible caulking, they looked like they are supposed to. Ah! But before we breath too deeply - one to go. The only timber truss left is one that doesn't span more than one room or hang out over a stairwell! The easiest one to do! Some morning this week we'll sneak away from the office and finish it up! Then a one more coat of varnish and they won't need to be touched again except for the occasional dusting!





A few weeks ago someone gave us the biggest compliment we could possibly have received. They told us the building looks like it has always been there. A comment like that indicates what we have been attempting to accomplish with the whole design, money and effort put into this adventure. If you know the architecture of our town you realize this is a good goal! I'm looking forward to not only moving our own business into the station, but actually finishing up the outside with the coming of long warm summer evenings and weekends!