Palettes Con't.

Tuesday was glorious. It was bright and sunny; warm but not hot. It was the perfect weather starting work on the palettes.

The first job is the worst part: taking the palettes apart. They are old and they’ve been repaired many times; to remove one board can often mean pulling well over twenty nails—many of them, twisted or broken.  

Once I get the planks off and cleaned, I saw the frames into smaller pieces for kindling. I drill holes in each plank for the stakes that will hold the them in place on the ground, and then I stain each piece with wood preservative. Then, they’re ready for laying.

It takes up to an hour-and-a-half to deconstruct each palette. It’s hard work, but it was lovely to work in the sunshine. I had the radio playing glorious music even though I was banging away with the hammer on the metal crowbars I use to dismantling work. 

I got only half of one palette done, and then, seeing how badly Sheba was limping, I took her to the vet. The vet discovered that one of her pads had been torn off so we’ll be taking it easy for a while, giving her a dietary supplement forever (to ensure she has no joint pain in her back) and I’m cutting back on her food. She’ll be joining me in losing some weight.

Then it was back to the palettes. I finished the one I started in the morning, and then got to work on the second. All the palettes, except the first, are very old and non-conforming so I have to saw all the lumber I remove from them—and I loathe using the skill saw because it’s so, so noisy! But slowly, the timber has started to pile up.

 I’m actually excited about this project now. I’m really looking forward to working over the next few days. The weather looks good and I’ve learned how to work at a slow pace.

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I invited Kevin and Shelly for a barbeque. They’re coming on Sunday. I feel totally safe with them and we’ll be eating outside. I like them. Their daughter pet sits for me. They live two doors up the street and so I’m going to ask if they will be my “first responders”—that is, the people my alarm company can call if I push my alarm for medical help.