Digger Ryan

The renovations continued today with the installation of the egress window in the basement. An egress window is a large window installed below ground depth, large enough for a person to climb through and out in the event of a fire or other emergency. In many cities, this has become a requirement in homes with basements.

First, the workers dug a hole against the foundation of the house underneath an existing tiny window that is approximately 1 meter by 2 meters to a depth of about 2 meters. The workers then removed the small window, then cut out a portion of the concrete foundation for the new larger egress window to fit into. They installed the window and the large window well, together with the ladder, then filled in the hole with dirt the originally removed. On the inside, a carpenter finished the interior installation of the window, added new moulding and replaced the wood paneling. All in all, the process took two full days.

Ryan and his assistant, Brian, did all of the outside labor of digging the hole, putting in the window well and replacing the dirt afterward.

While very friendly, Ryan is a very private person. I was very surprised when he agreed to let me take his picture. I liked this shot of him because it seems to capture his visible and private natures.

I am also very excited because I received a book I ordered by David duChemin, Within the Frame - The Journey of Photographic Vision. I've only have read the first 10 pages, and I am already so impressed. I would like to share just a couple of sentences that jumped out of the page for me:

"If you don't love photography for the sheer act of trying to express yourself, and will only find joy in it when you finally get there, yours will be a disappointing journey. Not only will you likely never 'get there' but you'll have missed how beautiful and exhilarating the journey itself is."