Wednesday, May 14, 2014

Diggin' Deep... For Motivation

    Good morning! Got at it, again, yesterday! Worked on the PORT gunwales, early-on. I started at the bow, and worked my way to the stern, cleaning-up the top half of the gunwales. I took care of two knots... one little one, and the BIG one, that was hanging on, at the top. 
    The ROT seems more pervasive than I had hoped. Though the BOW showed promise, the farther back I go, the more questionable it becomes. I'm bringing in the STERN, on both sides, now. It ain't pretty. Well, YES, she is. But the ROT may be teaching me a very hard lesson. I'm NOT giving up on her, yet. 
    I continued to the STARBOARD, choppin' out a good portion of the top of the gunwales there, as well. Transitioning into the STERN, I smoothed her out. Problem is... I'm still looking for "good wood." 
    The humps that I took out, the other day, were a big step, but she has to come down a bit more. That's what I'll do today. I'm holding onto "hope," as I continue to look for her STERN, and continue the painful chopping.
    I'm struggling a bit, here. I've got a wonderful canoe waiting in Montana, ready to take me on the Missouri... Knotty The Dugout Canoe. I really want to be out there! At the same time, I have a tree, RIGHT HERE, that called to me. Tesla is a tough one, and has already put me through some challenging times. I've been helping the people around me... yesterday put a serpentine belt on Jeff's van, with Randy. I'm giving everything I've GOT, any chance I get. I believe that's a lesson, here. I just hope I have a CANOE, when it's all over! 
    Last year, I learned a LOT, working on several trees! However, it took several FAILURES to do so. Though I try to let it flow away, I DO, in fact, get upset about this! Last year I lost TWO canoes that I put many weeks of hard choppin', into. One, to vandals... the other... to somebody else's "issues." Each one, however, led me to another beautiful tree. I proceeded on.
    The pains I go through, while chopping, are not what upsets me, when I lose a tree. I'm more upset that I lost the TREE! I'm still seeing a canoe, here. If I'm wrong, and she's teaching me to pick my trees more carefully, I will learn this. She MAY just be teaching me how to deal with the rot. We'll see. If it's the former, she may just be leading me back, to another tree... Knotty. I'm "O.K." with that.
                                       Canoe! Canoe!















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