Growth
In the ‘70’s the streets of Houston were lined with
gold. Out-of-state license plates were as common as the
“lone star” one. One of my older sisters and her
husband had moved here and bought a little U.S. Home off
of old Spencer Hwy. and Jack Rabbit Road. In our letters
and calls to each other she had conveyed the boomtown
that Houston was and the endless sprawl of building that
was going on. It wasn’t long before I was knocking on
her door and they put me up while I looked for a new
career in a new town. She was a nurse, and her shift
required her to be up at 4:30 a.m. to be at work down at
the Medical Center. I quickly got in the habit of
joining her for early coffee and then thumbing through
the “want ads” for new jobs. I was hired on the first
job I applied for with Fox & Jacobs Homes, starting at
$6.50 an hour to hang doors. I’d show up in the morning
and they’d give me a big flatbed truck full of doors
that I would spend the rest of the day hanging. I soon
learned the finer art of hanging doors, plumb and
square.
After a while the job became too routine and I
longed for something else. I had been eyeballing the way
the framed houses came together so quickly with
fast-paced crews of carpenters banging away in
symphonies of rapid-fire nail guns and blazing buzz saws
in the blistering sun. To a young kid it looked like
sawdust heaven, and that’s where I wanted to be. I put
in for a position as a framer’s helper and was hired on
the spot. That job paid $7.00 an hour and we worked an
average of 50 – 60 hour weeks. I kept up with the
hard-core demands of the crew and humped backbreaking
loads of lumber all day long across the concrete slabs
that reflected heat up to temperatures of 120 degrees.
At the end of the day they’d sit around on the floor and
drink cold beers while I swept up and cleaned the job to
make ready for the next day.
When we finished a house,
the boss would just throw away the blueprints on the
ground. I’d pick up the discarded plans and take them
home, and after a cold shower and a hot meal I’d
retreat to my room to study them late into the evening.
The bookstores were my next stop on my quest for
knowledge of the structural components of a residential
home. I bought “how-to” books on carpentry, framing and
roof geometry. I bought calculators, speed squares and
framing squares. I kept my eyes wide to all the steps
and details of the process that our framing crew went
through and absorbed the tips and tricks of the trade
like a sponge. It wasn’t long before I moved up to a
framer, then a lead carpenter with an increase in pay to
$9.50 an hour. I continued to learn as much as I could
and studied the blueprints of each home plan long after
we would complete the job, looking through the reasoning
of how all the structural components were put together
and the loads were carried and transferred throughout
the frame and foundation. I was basically teaching
myself how an engineer and architect think and becoming
a self-made designer. I bought drafting tools and a
drafting table and began to design and draw my own
homes. I soon put together my own framing crews and was
building homes for all the major home building companies
throughout greater Houston up until the early
‘80’s.
Then, the bottom fell out! Interests rates went
up to 21% and Houston slid into a deep energy recession.
New construction seemed to grind to a halt, and very few
new slabs were being poured or enough lumber packages
being dropped to sustain a framing crew. Builders were
going under everywhere, and foreclosures were going
through the roof. By necessity, I was forced to find a
new way to make a living doing what I loved – working
with tools. I lucked into a relationship with a small
custom fixture supplier where I got tons of leads on
work involved in custom kitchens and baths. It was
during the rest of the ‘80’s that I learned the finer
art of interior construction finishes. I absorbed all
the skills and studied the finish trades with the same
enthusiasm that I had with the structural framing
experience. I subscribed to Fine Woodworking and Fine
Homebuilding and amassed a collection that became my
library of references and techniques.
I became a master
carpenter and cabinet builder. I became a Corian and
laminate mechanic. I became a drywall finisher,
electrician and plumber. I became a meticulous tile and
stone setter. I became a professional painter and
studied decorative faux painting in New York under one
of the few masters in the western hemisphere. (Later,
in the early ‘90’s, having probably the first exhibition
of faux painting at the George R. Brown Home & Garden
Show under my company called “Where Faux Art.”) All
these skills where honed and refined over the years and
coagulated in an experience as a well rounded builder
who has in-depth understanding of all the trades and
techniques of the complete design and building process. |