It warmed today; briefly. Up to 52 or so. I took the big bike out for the briefest of rides. Sun alternated between depressingly hidden and gloriously exposed most of the day. The wind would whip up and then calm down. We seem caught hopelessly between the yearning of spring and the relentless stubbornness of winter to not give way.
Seems I may need some new work boots. I’ve had my current pair for probably 15 years or so. I know I had them when we built Kinport Junction and Senang and that was 2006. Maybe they will hold out long enough to finish this boat.
Today I sanded and sanded and sanded. At Noon my trusty Rigid 5” random orbital sander gave out. It’s only 3 years old, so sort of frustrating. Off I went to Home Depot for a replacement. I went with Dewalt this time. I suppose the Dewalt, the Rigid, the Makita and the Black and Decker are all probably built by the same 9-year old in Taiwan. So doubt that it matters much which one I get.
I’m gonna build me a boat
With these two hands
It’ll be a fair curve
From a noble plan
Let the chips fall where they will
Cause I’ve got boats to build
Jerry Jeff Walker
Years ago, I was in Crete. Sort of working, but mostly exploring and diving. On a long walk, I came across an old man in a small village building a wooden boat. He was working outside, under the hot summer sun, with just hand tools. I thought then how cool it would be to build a boat.
Thursday I laid the whiskey plank. I had a couple of fingers of Balvenie and enjoyed the moment. Still lots of work to do, but a milestone. I went with Scotch because presumably Scotland has a more robust background in boatbuilding than Kentucky.
Aft and stern stems are fully glued and screwed and given their first shaping. I faired the hull and removed all the staples.
At this point I have given her a really good first sand all around and taken the first cut at filling gaps. Tomorrow I will do another round of gap filling and then start round 2 of sanding. I am still bothered by the esthetics of the stems and how they attach. They are not perfect or even near perfect, but I cannot find good resources to show me how to correct. So, they will be functional, but less pleasing to the eye.
People seem to be getting itchy about this staying at home business. Around the country, Trump supporters are picketing and protesting to re-open all businesses regardless of the consequences. The dumbest among them continue to suggest Coronavirus is a hoax. We are truly living among idiots in our society.
There do seem to be more people taking this time to evaluate their lives and many seem to be asking why they are not doing more living while they can. Why not? When we are gone we are gone. Everything fuck all matters after that. So why isn’t everyone having as much fun as possible now. In the time we have. Seriously. That is the message I am taking away from this moment in time. I have spent most of my life doing whatever I wanted and I still feel I should have done more shit. I need to shake things up again—sometime soon. That’s coming.
Shannon came up for a couple of days. We did a little work on the business plan she is writing for her and her boyfriend’s business. Problem is that they do not have a clear vision of exactly what they are looking for. And, they do not have a location. So this makes it hard to complete a detailed plan. But we had a couple of nice meals and played bocci and caught up.
Snowed like hell on Friday and then was decent on the weekend. Cold still, but some sun, which helps.
I finished ‘Voices from the Grave’. I’m done with dark books. Moved on to Rick Bass’s ‘The Lost Grizzlies’.
While digging through older photos, looking for something or the other, I came across a shot from my favorite trail in the world. Mill Creek. This trail starts at the gravel road leading to Teton Canyon campgrounds and goes all the way to the top of Grand Targhe. I would always take the last leg, right to the top of the ski lift and then down the single track to the lodge for a cold beer and a burger. It is an amazing 2-hour or so ride that climbs and climbs through some of the most beautiful country in the world.
How the hell can a person, go to work in the morning,
come home in the evening and have nothing to say.
John Prine
The Martini Tales 