Joyce, great points!! I think Qwill will go for the rebuild of the barn with perhaps a few modifications because he did enjoy living in downtown Pickax. With Polly gone, do you think he would still want to go winter at the condo?

I got so busy with work this month I completely forgot about my Zoe Lambeth story. I think I will try to write more and go off on a wild tangent.

activated the computerized coffee maker and thawed some Scottish sweet bread from the freezer. It was a new item he picked up from the Scottish Bakery in town the week before. He set out two mugs and cut the bread on a wooden cutting board and set them out on the kitchen bar. He made some copies from Zoe's portfolio on the portable copier he kept in the condo office. He stapled the copies to one of the business cards zoe had in a pocket in the front of the portfolio.
By the time he finished, Bart was ringing the doorbell.

Well Qwill, do you have any idea why someone like Zoe would come to Moose County. Don't get me wrong I am happy here, but we are not exactly her cup of tea. Hixie, I have no idea, he said, but I think it has to do with a doctor's suggetion for her health. He did not mind making up slight fibs when the need arose. Well rumor has it she was seen dining with you last night, so I thought you would know. Qwill never seemed to get over the amazement at the speed the Pickax gossip mill could move. Well, Carol Lanspeak saw you and she told Larry, who told Dwight at a theater club meeting last night, who saw me this morning on the sidewalk. So she is ill you say? Hogwash. She looks perfectly healthy. Qwill snorted, looks can be deceiving Hixie, maybe she came to bathe herself in skunk water for its healing powers....at that Hixie swatted at him, as their food arrived.

He was wrong. He left the studio and started to get into his car. Since he had been at the condo, he had not been walking as much as he liked. He decided to cross Park circle and walk up the driveway to the theatre club. He walked passed the garage apartment that belong to him. He unlocked the iron gates that led to the burned out barn and kept going. He quickly arrived at the ruins. He stood there for a long time and looked. It looked stark and sad. A shell of the residence he had come to enjoy with the cats. Even the gazebo was gone. He could not leave it like this. He needed to have the property totally cleared, or build something. Maybe not another barn. Maybe there could never be another barn. What else? One house in Zoe's portfolio had caught his attention last night. It was an A frame type structure of redwood with a soaring roof that came to a point like the structure was a big triangle. It had a stone base.
It was a dramatic home. He had seen one of similar desisn in the Potato Mountains years ago, on Hawk's Nest Drive. It had a waterfall. But the home had been an A frame design. His mustache twitched and he tamped it with one fist. He had hesitated this past year to consider rebuilding until the arsonist had been caught. He was happy in his condo, and sometimes spending the night at the apartment over the garage, and an occasional weekend at the cabin at the lake. He did not need another home. Perhaps he should build something to donate to the city. He walked on past the ruin and down the path toward Trevelyn Road and the Art Center.

Several days later, and several interesting dinners with Zoe Lambreth later, G. Alan Barter called and asked if he could drop by one morning. Qwill agreed and turned on the coffee maker. The attorney arrived soon after and handed him the portfolio. He informed Qwill that Sven and Maurgerite Svorn had checked out. The portfolio did contain real photographs of work they had done. They had an excellent reputation throughout the nation. They had projects in many states. Maurerite taught part time at a university in California, and Sven voluntered with building houses for the homeless as a hobby. There firm was prosperous and Zoe Lambreth, as well had checked out. Qwill thanked him and as he closed the door he realized he had made up his mind. He would do something very controversial in Moose County. He would hire outsiders to design, build and decorate a residence where the barn once stood. But it would not be a residence for himself. He did not think he could ever live there again, where his barn had stood. Any other residence would pale in comparison for him. He was happy with his garage apartment, his condo and his cabin. He would have them build it as a living lab for an architecture and design department for the Moose County Community College and he would use the K fund to endow the college with scholarship money to make it work. The structure would be used for students to study and learn building and design for years to come. He would tap into Sven Svorn's genius to decide how this would work. He could use Maurgerites knowlege of teaching in a college and he could keep Zoe around for a long time, as the structure was being built. He had heard Fran talk about a design competition on televsion recently. The design apprentices remodeled rooms in a "lab house" over and over. He could picture a structure that would be repainted and redecorated each semester as new students practiced their art. ...........Fran......Fran.....she had been talking about the television show, just then Qwill thought..........What will Fran have to say about me bringing in a designer from out of state? Will she appreciate what I am doing, creating a school of design within MCCC? Or will she see this as a rebuff of her design skills. Qwilleran thought..........not if I make her think it is her idea!
He smiled to himself at Amanda potential reaction. He had so many ideas, and the Qwill columns he could get out of this would be inumerable. He had not been this excited in a long time. Yowwwww said Koko.......Nowwww said Yum yum as they picked up on his mood. He heard scratching and turned as Koko began using Zoe's portfolio for a scratching pad.

I really like the idea of Qwill revisiting the barn and pondering his options regarding rebuilding. I also like the idea of his fixing up the garage apartment for himself, since he enjoyed spending the summers in town.

Thank you for the encouragement Joyce and Corianne. I just got a spurt of energy. I appreciate you taking time to read it.

Thank you for the encouragement Joyce and Corianne. I just got a spurt of energy. I appreciate you taking time to read it.

Sorry for the triple post, My computer hiccuped.

Here goes.......

The next day was Saturday and Qwill had an appointment with Lisa Compton to ride out to West Middle Hummock and interview the group mothers at a home for mentally challenged adults, the K fund had partially funded, matching county money. Lisa was on the board of directors and Qwill planned to write a Qwill pen column about the home.

He picked Lisa up and they arrived 10 minutes early for their 10 am appointment. After interviewing the woman, Qwill invited Lisa to lunch on the way back. Lisa wanted to go to Oonosh's and Qwill agreed. They dined on wonderful Greek food and the conversation led to the new temporary Art director. Qwill told Lisa he had known her "down below" and she was an aquaintance. Lisa commented on her wardrobe, "Parisian" and her beauty, "stunning". Qwill said, "Lisa, let me bounce an idea off you." "Sure Qwill," she said. "I am considering building something to benefit the college on the barn site. I was thinking of a department of architecture and/or design. The surrounding gardens where the apple orchard once stood could be used for outdoor art or perhaps an ampetheatre, maybe even garden landscaping could be taught." Qwill that is so very generous of you. I think it is a splendid idea. But are you sure you will not want to rebuild the barn and live there. Perhaps another type residence? "
Lisa, this idea is new, so I cannot say I have given it alot of thought, but I make decisions quickly and do not allow myself to regret with "what ifs". I think I will speak to Bart about a proposal for the K fund. He can involve the college and local specialist in design, art and architecture. And perhaps landscape design. I will talk to the Theatre Club board about the posibility of an ampetheater. Perhaps all this would be to much and they could scale it down to the most needed areas. Qwill with all the snow in the fall, winter and early spring, and the mosquitos in the late spring and summer on into early fall, I am not sure how much use an outdoor ampitheater would get in Moose County!