I headed out Thursday night with the big radial arm saw and the plywood plates I cut last weekend. Friday morning I unloaded the scabs into the bathhouse where they will remain dry till I need them. Then I got that big saw off the trailer.
A windstorm the week before had trashed the camp so I stopped at Lucky's for breakfast on my way for the first load of lumber.
Imagine my surprise at seeing a stretch limo parked in front of this small town store.
The first load of lumber was heavy but no big deal. It pretty much filled the bed of my trailer. I unloaded it onto a hastily constructed rack to keep it off the ground. Then I turned my attention to solving a problem. How DO you carry 20 ft lumber in a 10 ft trailer? Here's one answer...
It was a little rickety I must admit but careful driving got me the 25 miles from the sawmill to camp without incident. The unloading of lumber and covering everything up took the best part of Friday. It started raining Friday evening and continued into Saturday morning. I treated myself to a breakfast at Lucky's and then to a little BS-ing around the pot-bellied stove down at Ballard's Hardware. Around noon I grabbed a burger at EG's and headed up to get something accomplished.
That's when I discovered my wood rack had collapsed. Bummer!
So, I spent several more hours arranging a new place to re-stack the lumber. Finally, I busted out the rest of the tools and the generator and prepared for a day of truss building. At this point in time, I am becoming painfully aware that I am feeling quite bad. Coughing, headache, and maybe a slight fever.
Sunday was getting colder so I built a fire and, wanting it to last, I decided to add a root ball from a white oak that was excavated last winter when we were digging the footers.
Hand-trucks, the best thing that ever happened to the wheel.
My cough has worsened and the muscle aches are more intense - especially in the shoulders and lower back. Anyway, it was so damp and cold I was not in much of a building mood so I got out the chainsaw and the come-along and dispensed with several small trees that were in the way of roof building. Finally, I got down to it and knocked out two trusses before dark.
Monday was a much brighter day but a little breezier and colder. Still suffering from heavy coughing and on and off fever with muscle aches. I really wanted to throw in the towel. The macho won out and I managed to finish the small, 16 ft, trusses - 8 in all.
Now I am sitting at home writing this blog because I feel too bad to go to work :(
