Construction Journal Entry Week of 3/27/05

3/29-31/05 I went up to the property for 3 days: Tuesday through Thursday.

There was quite a bit of snow on the West side of the pass and it was snowing in the pass. But on the East side it was raining. I arrived at 1:45. There was about 4 inches of snow on the ground but after a couple runs at it, I was able to drive all the way to the trailer.

After moving in and having lunch, I ground an edge on one of the scraper blades I had made and attached it to the handle. It fit on the handle perfectly.

I sanded the lower five logs in the bathroom and the two top logs in the utility room. Then I scraped and gouged one log in the utility room. My new blade didn't work at all. The steel is evidently too soft. I would get a sharp edge on it and it would be dull after only a couple of scrapes. I gave up on it and started using a 1 1/2 inch scraper. Being narrower and not having as big a handle as the old scraper, it didn't work as well, but it did work and it holds an edge for quite a while. I don't have that much scraping left to do so maybe this one will do the job.

On Wednesday, I planed, scraped, and gouged three logs and the window frame in the utility room. I went outside and drove the scaffold bolt back in the bathroom wall. Back inside, I put the nut and washer back on and tightened it up. Then back outside, I took off the temporary brace holding up the scaffold frame. Finally, I swept up the chips and vacuumed the walls and the floor. Then when I was about to vacuum my clothes off at the end of the day, the vacuum quit working. I decided to give up on Gus' old vacuum and get another one.

On Thursday morning I cleaned the glue beads off the molding on the Grid A3-B3 window. I used a sharp 3/4 inch chisel and it worked pretty well. I am getting better at applying glue to the molding so each window gets easier than the last. By the time I do the last window, there probably won't be any glue to clean up at all.

Next, I mitered and installed the molding trim on the Grid C3-D3 window. I think the windows really look good with the trim on. Then I varnished the bottom five logs in the bathroom, which finishes up the varnishing on that wall. I varnished the top five logs and the window frame in the utility room.

After lunch, when I was packing up to leave, I couldn't find my cell phone. I looked everywhere in the trailer, back up in the building, in the privy, and in the pickup. I also looked down by the gate thinking it might have fallen on the ground when I drove in. I just couldn't find it so I left for home at 1:40. On the way, I stopped at the ranger station and asked if they had found my phone. I had stopped in there on the way up. They hadn't seen it. When I got home, I found it in the charger. I hadn't taken it and I hadn't missed it until I was ready to leave. I guess that qualifies as a senior moment.



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