A Brick in the Road

Less than two months ago, I purchased the building that was my grandpa's and great-grandpa's grocery store. It had went through a couple of owners and then sat with closed doors for years since my grandparent's retired in the 1990s. 

It had been a busy summer transitioning to living back in Cook, starting a new job and traveling for another job, but we had made progress on the building. Thanks to family and friends (and a couple of good connections), we had cleaned out most of the remaining items, the surrounding landscape and front exterior. 

I knew the next two major projects were going to be the roof and the brick exterior. But Sunday night I came home to this: 

The majority of the east wall had fallen while I was out of town for the weekend. 

Previously the wall was home to a large mural of Cook. Originally painted by Nemaha Valley high schoolers, the mural was given a new coat of paint a few weeks ago in an effort spearheaded by one of the original painters. It was great that this was finished in time for the celebration of Cook's 125 anniversary, however as you can see, this wall has been quickly changed. 

The result? The decision on how/when to replace/repair the brick has definitely been expedited as we still have to look forward to winter. But as of now, this project has reached a major speed bump. Stay tuned.