New Temple Space

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law

Dove & Serpent Oasis is excited to announce some big news. After months of hard work, we are finally able to say that we will soon be moving into a brand new Temple space. We have broken ground on the all-new construction, and thanks to the hard work of our members, we are proud to say that we will be transferring into a much larger space, one that we can call our own. We want to thank everyone for their patience and understanding during this transition time, and for everyone’s support and enthusiasm. This will be our final month in our current space, and due to the construction process and our impending initiations, we will not be having our regular Gnostic Mass this month. Please contact us privately for our new address, and we look forward to seeing you in our new Temple this June! 

Love is the law, love under will.

Yours Fraternally,
Soror De Profundis
Body Master
Dove & Serpent Oasis
O.T.O.

3-D RENDERINGS

Little Help From My Brothers

Brother Rob and Brother Scott came over to the space today and we got a lot of work completed. Very impressed with the progress we made.

The wall and doorway for the bathroom are in place. The bathroom is so much larger than the old space that you can't even compare the two spaces. There was even some discussion today about installing a claw foot tub in there as well... it's big enough for sure.

Good bye shoilet! If you still aren't sure what a shoilet is or saw the one at the old space, Urban dictionary had this to say about it — "A disfunctional bathroom setup whereby a shower and a toilet exist in a barrier free environment. Commonly found in the dormitories of Sienese universities, these cramped and unthoughtfully designed bathrooms typically decrease the occupant's will to live."

We also started to frame the columns and half walls that separate the common area form the temple area. We'll probably utilize the space inside the half walls for storage. The columns themselves will have small niches put into them. These ornamental recesses will act as small alter spaces.

The wall also went up for the E.G.C. dressing room. This is where the team can get ready before Mass and store all of their clothing and equipment.

Never Enough Lumber

Once again, I am at the Home Depot picking up a small load of lumber for todays work. They are starting to recognize me there and have stopped asking me what I'm building. They know all to well that I'll be back for more soon enough. I should just work for Home Depot at this rate.

Framing has gone up around the utility closet. This houses the temple spaces industrial dehumidifier. We've also taken the walls toward the door and should be joining the temple and common area very soon.

The wall has gone up that sets the space for the bathroom and kitchen area. Excited to see the space start to get broken up into it key rooms.

We'll probably add a sliding screen door at some point so we can enjoy the great weather and let the breeze flow through the space in the summer.

Tools of the Trade

We are making progress around the perimeter of the space. We have begun to frame walls on the opposite side of the temple. I'll post some 3-D renderings soon so it's easier to envision what we are working towards.

Some of our most trusty tools of the trade helping us make this hard work look easy. If you don't know how all three of these items work together... come by, and we'll show you a thing or two.

And Behold, Before Me, A Crows Foot.

Framing continues at a slow but steady pace. I'm still wrapping up chalking line throughout the rest of the space. There are Crows Feet and X's everywhere. We got a lot of framing to do still, but it is exciting to see the entire space mapped out on the floor. And when doing so, a steel carpenters square and a tape measure are really your only best friends.

Sixteen Inches On Center

Brother Rob and Brother Jimmy came by today and we ran over to our favorite Temple supply store, The Home Depot. They have everything for your temple building needs. We picked up a set of 100 standard and pressure treated 2x4's to begin our first day of framing the space.

Our Body Master Soror De Profundis shows us the finer points of using our 0.22 caliber Ramset Mastershot gun. We use this little number to shoot nails through the floor plates right into the concrete.

After measuring and snapping chalk lines on the floor and ceiling, we started with the bar area naturally. In reality, it was the ideal area to begin for us and we made fast work of some additional walls headed toward the doors. Not bad for just a few hours of work, but there is so much more to go.

Lumber goes fast and this is no where near enough to finish the job. I estimate we will need close to 400 2x4's before we finish the framing portion of the build.

Unlocking the Door

The floor in front of the door way has been repaired and has had some time to cure. We have measured twice and marked the wall with the proper dimensions where our door is to be installed. We will again be needing to use diamond saws to cut into these foundation walls to make the opening. Difficult work.

The wall section has been cut out earlier in the day. We went through concrete block, wire mesh and heavy stone to create the proper sized opening. We are welding in heavy steel framing around the new opening to secure the structure. Once this is complete, we will do a little finishing with some mortar around the stone work and then move the new doors into place.

The double doors are in place and fit perfectly. They have been sealed and we are ready to go.

A Firm Foundation

Concrete was poured into the new space about 5 days ago. It has cured enough for us to begin moving equipment in and finally start work inside. The new space is roughly 2,040 sq. ft., a huge difference from the Cabbagetown location.

New bathroom appliances have ben purchased and are awaiting eventual installation.

The outside portion of the bar has been moved into the space as well. But it will not be in use until a large number of tasks are taken care of first.

The concrete work is not totally complete. The initial pour did not go up to the foundation walls edge due to the vapor barrier that was initially in place. We have cut away the barrier areas as needed and will use a diamond blade concrete saw to cut a clean edge down the length of the floor in several places to clean the jagged concrete edges left behind from the initial pour. Once this is complete we will pour more concrete and finish these open areas to ensure our floor is against the foundation walls without any issue. This will be some tough work with the diamond saw, but worth the effort as we need a clean, even foundation to afix our pressure treated 2x4 wall plates to as well as our new entry way door.

Breaking Ground

Breaking ground outside of the new temple space. We will be pouring a concrete pad here for the new entry way.

Ground has also been broken inside to lay in the appropriate work for all of the plumbing. This new space will have a proper half bath with toilet, pedestal sink and even some seating. No more awkward showlets in the kitchen area.

New Beginnings

This is an old photo of a space where something amazing is going to happen one day.

Oasis Candle Ritual

Frater Volantis, Sister Shea Peacock and Soror De Profundis performed an anointing ritual with our newly made Magus Candles. The small ones will be given out to everyone attending The Gnostic Mass tomorrow and the large one in the center will be lite throughout the year, as is our local tradition.

New Gnostic Saint Candles

Today is the Vernal Equinox. I'm designing a new set of Gnostic Saint candles for the Gnostic High Mass we are doing this coming Sunday. Plus, we need a new set anyways as the old ones are on their last legs. Just doing the short list at the moment, but want to produce a complete set of 76 to display in the new temple space.

Malick's Knight of Cups

There's a certain film director, of whom I have a not so secret love affair with, whom has a new film coming out... I found the title and poster for the film most intriguing. Terrence Malick's Knight of Cups had it's World Premiere at the 65th Berlin Film Festival just yesterday. The film is described as such:

Once there was a young prince whose father, the king of the East, sent him down into Egypt to find a pearl. But when the prince arrived, the people poured him a cup. Drinking it, he forgot he was the son of a king, forgot about the pearl and fell into a deep sleep. The road to the East stretches out before him. Will he set forth?

As is with all of Malick's previous films... I'm sure this one will be steeped in layers of meaning. Check out the poster...

New Orleans Trip

Out on the town in New Orleans before III° Initations at Alombrados Oasis.