Its safe to say that I don’t normally engage in quite this much physical activity. I don’t have a fitbit or any other kind of tracking device, but if I did I think many of my normal work days it would count my steps in the hundreds, not the thousands. Not so when building a house.

Thanks to the MLK holiday, I’ve gotten to spend 5 of the last 7 days working on the job site. The house is making a lot of progress, as we’ll update soon. But its also taking its toll physically. I’ve told many people that I have not yet discovered anything I could do at 28 that I can’t do at 38 (well, 39 now, but who’s counting?) but I now pay a much steeper price the next day.

Lately I’ve been drilling a lot of holes and joining pipes above my head, and crimping PEX plumbing rings that seem to be made for a gorilla. My arms and shoulders are weakening by the afternoon and achy in the evenings. Today is the first day where I’ve had to stick to a regimen of basic painkillers, and I’ve got two more days of work ahead this weekend. Lately I actually find myself grateful for a day in the office so I can recuperate!