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| An overview of the layout with less than 72 hours until the truck arrives. |
As I have for many years, I spent the NFL Championship weekend in the shop feverishly working on a layout for Springfield with the games on in the background. In some ways, I feel like every year at this time, preparing the layout is always a two minute drill - a mad rush to have everything looking good for the "Big Game." Even though the plan wasn't to have the layout done for this year, I still want it to look somewhat complete which means there was a lot to finish over the weekend.
One project I wanted to finish was a billboard for along Memorial Avenue. This was scratchbuilt and designed so that the signage can be changed. The top of the billboard is removable and the sign was printed on cardstock which slips into the frame. This year, for the 100th anniversary of the spur, I created a billboard using the Eastern States Exposition's Centennial Logo.
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| The billboard along Memorial Avenue with the sign celebrating the Big E's 100th. |
One project which I wasn't planning on having ready for the show this year was the Mallary Complex. However, to tease the project for next year, I added a construction site. Construction fencing, with billboards promoting the building, were added around the perimeter of the site and stakes were added to outline the footprint of the structure.
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| The Mallary Complex construction site. |
While almost everything I wanted done for this year is ready to go for the show, there is one big project which isn't ready yet - the Young Building. For some strange reason, the red paint is curing very slowly. I need it dry so that I can add the mortar. My hope is that it will be ready to go later today so that I have enough time to finish the exterior of the building. As they like to do in Hollywood, this is the cliff hanger I'll leave you with for the week. If you stop by the show, you'll find out if I made it - otherwise you'll have to tune in here to the blog next week for the show recap...
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| Will the paint dry on the Young Building in time for the show? |
