Construction Journal

4/8/01 - The Decision

A day which will resonate throughout the days remaining in my pathetic life. Today is the day in which I made the decision to build a boat. I made the decision lightly, almost cavalierly, and yet, once made, the decision resulted in a rush of idiotic euphoria that had me feeling good about myself for perhaps a full eight minutes.

This feeling died a horrible death as I contemplated the future home of my nascent marine construction career.

I am a slob of the first order. Nothing is so important that it cannot wait to be done until some unspecified date in the future. You can see that this is so by taking a quick look at the state of my garage.

I once had a neighbor who was a classic type "A" personality. Polished his garage floor, washed his car once a week, spent days upon days working in his yard, the whole bit. My garage drove him nuts. I took special delight in this.

4/9/01 - Choosing the boat

Today the decision moved from the realm of fantasy to the realm of expensive fantasy. I ordered two items; a set of plans for the Acorn Tender from Wooden Boat and a book by Iain Oughtred called "Clinker Plywood Boatbuilding Manual."

It is my fervent hope that good Iain can guide this foolish amateur from his current state of ineptitude with all things tool-like to at a standard of proficiency sufficient to keep all of my body parts attached.

Aside from my total abhorrence to pain, I'm convinced that one cannot be accepted into heaven unless all of the appendages one was issued at birth can be accounted for.

4/10/01 - Kevin Springs into Action

"But as this enterprise appeared to me to be one of great magnitude, I waited until I had attained an age so mature as to leave me no hope that at any stage of life more advanced I should be better able to execute my design. On this account, I have delayed so long that I should henceforth consider I was doing wrong were I still to consume in deliberation any of the time that now remains for action."

Rene Descartes, Meditations, 1641

Right, Rene! So today I took action. Check out the great fluorescent light I installed in my garage! Rene would have been proud of me.

4/11/01 - A Slow News Day

I'm struck by how little boat building is actually going on here. Perhaps just talking and thinking about boat building is quite enough for some people. I don't think it is for me, but I haven't actually built anything yet, have I?

This is my dog, Tucker. He's wearing what is known as a "Buster Collar," meant to keep him from chewing on tender parts. And are his parts tender! He was neutered today, and my heart goes out to him.

I know that the procedure is for the best, but if there's anything that even comes close to describing the meaning of life, it has to be the need for all creatures to have sex, and to procreate, and the fact that Tucker has had that taken from him saddens me. Fortunately he won't hold me responsible for his disfigurement.

Good dog.