Saturday, August 22, 2009

On Not Being Idle

I seriously considered just being lazy for the whole time I am on vacation, but it doesn't seem like that's going to happen.

When my daughter went to visit my sister in Oregon a few weeks ago, my evil sister sent me back this dragon sculpture/puzzle thing. She knows I like dragons and she does love to torment me so this seemed like the perfect gift. One hundred and forty seven little wooden pieces that had to be punched out, individually sanded and assembled with very sketchy instructions. It took me a little over two hours, four cigarettes and two cups of coffee.

Whew! It's cool, but I'm glad that's done. Sometime in the future I will dab a little Elmers glue in some strategic places and shoot the thing with some green Krylon.

I also spent about four hours out in my workshop, cleaning and rearranging and making room. I've put together two truckloads (okay, a small truck) of stuff to get rid of. One of just junk and trash and the other metals and plastics to go to the recycling joint.

I'm going to try and build myself a good rolling workbench that I can build other things on. I do like building things, even if I am not all that good at it. I learned most of my construction techniques in the sign business so I tend to make things that will stand up to 90mph winds. The things I build tend to be heavy and way over engineered, but by gawds they don't usually fall apart!

I just hope when I'm done with the workbench that it doesn't fall through the floor.

So anyway, I'm off to clean up some more stuff and sort more things out in the workshop. I figure by monday I'll be ready to start building.

Wish me luck...

8 comments:

  1. Clearly you are bored, and I need a bench/coffee table thing. Get crackin'!

    Hee..... it's not a vacation for me unless I do nothing. No cooking, no catering to kids and pets... Um...yeah, so I've never had a vacation.

    ReplyDelete
  2. May vacation this year consisted of running the tourist business for the folks while they went "up nort'". For some reason inmates and tourists share ALOT of the same characteristics...you just aren't supposed to pepper spray them!

    Sounds like you're having about the same kind of vacation.

    (Next year I'm going on a cruise...with "Juan the Cabana Boy!"

    ReplyDelete
  3. Rev,

    If you want a workbench, I've got one word - McMaster-Carr. OK, thats two words, but they've got some awesome workbenches. I'll shoot you a pic of my maple topped beauty. Heavy like you can't imagine.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Over building must be a genetic thing. Our contractor said the well house I built was going to last 100 years and could support a pickup set on top of it. My chicken coops were all built with 4x4's and 2x6's since that's what I had for salvage. All of them held up under 3 ft of snow without a single sag.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Amy- I'll build it, but it will weigh 2oo pounds when I am done and you will have to come get it. And it will most likely be extremely ugly. A craftsman I am not.

    Peggy Sue- I wish I would have known about the beauty of pepper spray when we were living in Branson. They would have run me out of town years earlier.

    BA- $2500.00 for just a bench top? I'm not independently wealthy like you. Mine will be made of plywood.

    Critter- My stuff either falls apart immediately or it will outlast the pyramids.

    ReplyDelete
  6. I'm okay with 'rustic' (hello....look at my choice of wording...lol) but if you could make it just a smidge lighter, that would be great. I may be a little chubby, but a sumo, I am not. :-P

    ReplyDelete
  7. Amy- I'll make it as light as i am able. But with my projects, half of the weight is lumber and the other half is 3" deck screws.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Rev, be glad you're handy with tools. Even walking into the hardware store intimidates me. My dad did try, and he is handy, as are my brothers, but somehow the ball got dropped with me

    ReplyDelete