And so it begins. Let me tell you something about busting things down: It sounds a lot easier than it is. When I envisioned deconstructing the old decrepit studio to make way for the new green studio, I pictured sledgehammers. I pictured blasting some Slayer on the tape deck and beating hell out of the walls. This is teenage movie fantasy, folks. And it’s not just because I’m being all delicate and trying to salvage every last nail, every final block of foam insulation. Mainly, it’s because the electrical system is still in place, and whanging around metal-headed tools of destruction whilst the wires are still live isn’t exactly a smart move. So it’s been slow and steady, all Labor Weekend long.

Let me tell you something else about the value of green building: One of the major tenets of building green is using nontoxic materials to erect whatever structure it is you’re erecting. The human body is a delicate little machine; all those particulates and toxic gases can be problematic. Case in point: I was pulling down all the studio’s insulation over the weekend (pics below), happily hacking away with my crowbar and hammer, only to notice about midafternoon on the third day – when buckets of snot began spitting out my nostrils – all the glimmering particulates of dust and shed fiberglass insulation hanging in the air. My lungs have yet to recover.

So here’s a little photographic tour of my weekend for your viewing pleasure. (Someday, maybe after I’ve unclogged my lungs of all the gunk they’ve gathered, I’ll sign up for the Flickr – there are far too many pics in my ornately labeled files to post here.)