Potic Finale

Potic Cottage front facade

Potic Cottage screened-in porch

 Potic Cottage bedroom

 Potic Cottage stairwell

Long-time readers of this blog know that it all began with the purchase of a small cottage in the woods.  Potic Cottage, set on Potic Mountain in the Hudson Valley, was a one bedroom, 665 sq.ft. house we purchased in 2007. Now, ten years later, the cottage has taken on a screened in porch, two additional bedrooms, and a full bath. A mix of folk art, midcentury modern fixtures, and second-hand antiques, Potic Cottage has a classic Catskill vibe.  Better yet, we've had wonderful memories there, the bear that ate out of our bird feeders, the gong meditation Jackson created, even a documentary shot there.

Potic Afternoon

Basking in the afternoon sunshine, we celebrated four luxurious days of doing very little except reading, making art, playing yahtzee, and drinking wine. Needless to say, it was sheer perfection.

Potic: Full of Surprises

Here's Potic Cottage on sunnier, summer days. Ah, yes, I remember them well.
This Valentine's weekend started with the sad news of the demise of our pickup truck, Ol' Blue. Wolfie cited extensive frame rust, a sketchy transmission situation, and a dead water pump. We took it on the chin, but kept our heads up, knowing we would be one with Potic for the first time in three months.
Upon arrival, the mountains of ice-crusted snow glistened in the moonlight, all the way up to the front of the house. Carving a sliver of a parking spot, we then trekked all of our weekend gear up to the house by foot, a task made all the more challenging as James and I sank up to our knees with each step. But no matter, we would be toasty warm inside once we got the fire going, well after James defied death and climbed out onto the roof with a broom to clear the chimney cap.
It was as cold in the house as it was outside, so we waited til morning for the house to come up to temperature to turn on the water. Alas, it was not to be. The well pump, caput. Armed with every bucket and pot in the house, we melted enough snow to wash dishes and make coffee. It's amazing how little water you can get away with when you have to melt it first. And let me say standards of cleanliness become a little lower.
After three months away, we also had unforeseen new friends move in, leaving cobwebs, empty birdseed kernels and droppings in their wake. With rags and white vinegar, I got busy. Mold in the freezer, gone. Burst soda cans in the fridge, gone. Dust along the ceiling, gone. But it wasn't until I opened the oven that I had to call in reinforcements. Four mice, in different stages of decomposure, trapped themselves inside, their carcasses revealing a cannibal among them. I'll spare you the details, but yes, eventually thanks to James' mortuary services, they were gone too.
With the house returned to its clean, if waterless, state, we popped the cork on the champagne, and raised a glass or two. It was, after all, still Potic.

Before and After

Potic Cottage: Before

Potic Cottage: After

Crow's Nest, Hog Island, Maine: interior Before

Crow's Nest, Hog Island, Maine: Interior After
Even while rusticating, where we reside can have an impact on our experience. Just ask Thoreau. House Thinking by Winifred Gallagher and At Home, a new book by Bill Bryson are just two of many texts that explore how our homes evolve and the impact they have on our psyche. Both of these Bouler Architecture 'before and after' projects were on strict budgets and wanted to tread lightly in their environmental impact. The top one is our weekend place, Potic Cottage, in the Hudson Valley--a one bedroom cottage originally 665 square feet. The other, Crow's Nest on Hog Island, Maine, houses Audubon's summer ornithology camps. Through a combination of economical design and creative use of materials, these projects were able to transform the space to be most hospitable.

Potic Cottage: Painted!

Rarely does a house project take less time than budgeted; however painting the first floor exterior of Potic Cottage this weekend was rather straightforward. The kids even helped out, making the project quick work. The color choice kind of chose us, don't ask, but Jackson said, "It's a country house, after all," so we decided to go for it. Now all you need to imagine is a second story deck off the back, large enough for a tent.

Potic Progress: Front Facade

The images from the contractor's cell phone kind of speak for themselves.

Potic Progress: Siding

To our great pleasure, we pulled into Potic Cottage's driveway to discover siding on the house. After quite a bit of creative deliberation, James decided on a hardy plank panel with batten trim on the addition, with mahogany to be installed on the front facade. As for color, we wanted to keep the arts and crafts mood without losing the modernity of James's design. We're thinking of painting the original portion of the house a charcoal grey. A big thanks to contractor Tim Hilgendorff and his crew from Timberhill Constructionfor incredible craftsmanship-- we can hardly wait to see it complete.

Renovation: Unexpected Therapy

I needed to clear my mind from the whirlwind of fundraising and step away from my computer, so the entire family retreated to Potic Cottage, our small spot in the Hudson Valley. After a couple of days of birdwatching and kayaking, it was time to turn my attention to home improvements. We had taken most of the winter off, so it was long overdue. After a roofing leak was repaired, it left unsightly peeling paint in the spare bedroom, eeewww, which revealed a laminated wall board underneath, double eeeww. With spatula in hand, it was time to go. And to my surprise, it felt good to roll my spataula along the wall, paint curling up in long streamers, more like the guilty pleasure of peeling sunburn than renovation. The result, clean but not good looking. I'm hoping that with the proper primer or with white pine nailed on top, it will be much nicer. Until then, I'm looking for some big paintings to distract visitors.
Undeterred, I straightened out the upstairs bathroom, adding small shelves and towel hooks. And how do you like my toilet paper holder? Rustic, no? I capped the improvements by putting my bed on its proper frame. What better way to celebrate this frenzy of nesting? By enjoying last year's improvements of a screened-in porch and a fire in the Malm stove over a glass of red wine.

Captree: Finish Work

Finish work is underway in the Captree projects. In the first house, an addition on an existing weekend cottage, a simple color scheme and clean fixtures were important in setting a relaxed mood. This house will also use some built-in furniture to keep with the minimalist approach.

Wordless Weekend

The Birdhouses of Potic

A lazy and warm afternoon we spent at Potic Cottage yesterday-- too blissful for words. Can't me thankful enough. Set about the very rustic landscape with a glass of red and a camera. Couldn't help but see the artistic potential in these 'tree' houses. Looks like a possible series to me.

The bottom one is a new platform for the Eastern Phoebes' nest we displaced by screening in the porch. Liv says she heard them this morning with their courtship song, so let's hope it works. It did for a displaced nest from Islip for some sparrows for whom we were able to find a new spot, which they are using right now.

Week-ending

For those of you who remember Mr. Roger's Neighborhood, you surely remember how he used to walk through his door and change into his sweater and sneakers, signalling the tranformation into relaxed mode. On busy days I think of this as I find myself still in my work clothes and shoes late into the evening.
My Potic Cottage wardrobe is like Mr. Roger's sneakers. With a handful of casual clothes helping to create my weekend mode, I don them to signal the 'relaxed me', pictured here with James in the Spotty Dog, an essential part of our weekend routine. Another part of our weekend circuit is a trip to Olde Hudson, now in its new location. A spacious space with tall ceilings, this local gourmet shop feels more like the general store than Dean and Deluca's. And for those of you who want to visit the area, perhaps becoming a weekender yourself, The Sullivan House in Athens is going to open as a small hotel in the coming months. Please, bring your casual clothes and come to visit.

Ol' Blue

Cars are a superficial way we define ourselves and others. A new Corvette? Mid-life crisis. Mini-van? Make that a double mid-life crisis with a built-in DVD player along with the third row of seats. For me, I knew Potic Cottage would never be complete without a pick-up truck.

It was a magical moment-- me, the truck, Potic Cottage-- it all came together this weekend. The truck, yet another way actor/musician/fabulous person Tom Judson has enriched our lives, is perfect for bringing the kyack to Green Lake, or for hauling furniture, or for all those rugged things I've been known to do (uh, well, maybe not so much, but now with the truck-- definitely maybe!) Too bad I had to leave it behind as we cut our week upstate short due to heavy rain and coastal flooding back home in Islip. The perfect vehicle for that moment? Ark.