To those about to hammer, drill, screw and cut, we salute you
There seems to be a list of basic tools that you need to have to fill your obligations to society as a handyman of even a middling familiarity and competency.
Home
A Home Away from Home
“Gaby was four when she was diagnosed in June 2016, and her birthday is in October so she’s five now,” says Keira Kucherean. Her life changed dramatically when she was told that her daughter Gabriella has medullary pilocytic astrocytoma, a type of brain stem tumor, and that she would need ongoing treatment in Vancouver. Because …
The Evolution of a Home
By 2001, however, that big detached deck on the front of the house was deteriorating and we decided that a verandah running across the entire front of the house would cut down on the seasonal evening sun glare and provide what amounted to a sheltered outdoor living room in the summer. This addition we were …
Home Is Where the Heart Is
In August of 2008, we had ground cleared so we could build a new house. It wouldn’t be very big or fancy, but it would be a clean, dry place to live. You see, the previous winter I had had pneumonia. Which was exacerbated by the mold in the existing house we lived in. It …
Hold Onto that Heat
Woodstoves are still a very traditional heat source for our homes and cabins. Firewood and stoves have always been messy with chips and bark in a trail from the woodpile to the stove, but it’s the way of the north. Sadly firewood isn’t as close to town now as 25 years ago and permits are …
This is Home
Former Yukoner Jerome Stueart and Yukon author Marcelle Dubé will read together form their books on Dec. 13 at Baked Cafe. It will be an evening about fantasy novels.
“It Can Happen to Anybody”
“Once you hit homelessness your world crumbles. People don’t know that there’s people who care.” So says Kerry Nolan, who is speaking first hand. Now, she is the administrative coordinator at the Victoria Faulkner Women’s Centre in downtown Whitehorse. She welcomes women to the centre, chats with them over coffee while they wait for appointments. …
Born at Home in Marsh Lake: Kristin’s story
Kristin homesteads at Marsh Lake with her partner Ron, her two sons and her stepson and her parents living close by. She had imagined having her babies at home since she was a teenager. “Giving birth is natural, every animal does it and we were made to do this,” she says. But when she went …
In praise of Whistle Bend
As I turn from Mountain View Drive and toward our Whistle Bend home, I am yet again gobsmacked by the sudden and looming sight of the mountains on the far side of the Yukon River. Blue in the mornings, pink at night and otherwise brilliantly lit against a vivid indigo background of so much sky, …
Clay Cliff Comfort
It’s funny how a change in geography can alter your perspective on something you’re well acquainted with. My places of residence within Whitehorse had always been above the Alaska Highway — first Hillcrest, then Granger. But that changed in the fall of 2009 when I rented out a room in a small bungalow on Cook …
Stuffed?
Ah, stuff. Sometimes my life can feel way too focused on the next thing I think I “need”, as precious hours are spent reorganizing the ones I already have in order to make room. When I get fed up and hop on my anti-materialistic horse, my mind is split between rationalizing what I have and …
DIY, If You Dare
They have a saying in the Dixie States — or maybe it’s the military: “When you’re up to your ass in alligators, it’s hard to remember your mission was to drain the swamp.” Unfortunately, I hadn’t heard this truism before launching my career as a DIY homereno star. Winnipeg, 1971. The summer of peace and …
Home Truths and Other Stories
The inherent drama of buying, selling, or renovating homes is tailor-made for reality television. You don’t need to own a house to be captivated by the minutiae of managing the large and small choices these programs painstakingly document. Still, it’s common to feel somewhat suspicious of the heightened “reality” on display. In recent years, in …
Rock this wall
I like blank, plain walls in the kitchen. Uncluttered and simple. If the paint is the same colour as every other wall in the house, even better. Crap! I am not even kidding myself, here. We have a very nice kitchen, but those walls are just a glaring bore. I guess I won’t be binge-watching …
How to Avoid Pitfalls When Hiring a Contractor
So you just bought a new place, and you didn’t pay too much attention during shop class, so you hire a contractor to do some work. But how do you avoid home reno nightmares? Bill Greer, director of capital maintenance at Yukon Housing Corporation, shares some ideas. First of all, the scope of a contractor’s …
A friend in the house
I’ve discovered that if you want to meet some terrific people, just advertise your house for sale. Immediately, people start phoning you to ask to drop by to have a look. This is what happened to Daisy and I last month when we decided to sell our house privately. These really nice people came by …
Cool Tools for Handy Dudes
Birthday, anniversary, Father’s Day. What do you give the guy who has everything? More tools, of course. Diamonds may be a girl’s best friend, but tools reign in a handyman’s workshop. Life is short, but a cool tool is forever. Most tools are easily recognized. A saw is a saw and a drill is a drill, …
Building the Next Standard
Kobayashi + Zedda Architects (KZA) are defining design in the Yukon with projects dotting the landscape. Their work embodies the meaning of adapting and developing solutions in northern conditions, and they lead a company of builders and policy makers toward a sustainable future. For Winnipeg-born and raised Antonio Zedda, one of KZA’s partners, a driving …
Back in the Saddle. Thanks for Keeping It Warm
I’m sitting in a DJ booth, bopping my head along to Modern English. It’s hard not to think about how easy it is to slot right back into Northern life. In most ways it feels like I never left, and other than the tragic absence of the Colonel and a lack of a Blizzard repository, …
