Before the Beginning

I knew I wanted to build a boat; an Ideal Boat that would sail AND row, and not cost too much. But I needed a place to build it. I had heard of people building boats in their basement (but how do you get it out???). I read of one fellow who built a boat in his living room AND HIS MARRIAGE SURVIVED!!! Some people build boats under the blue sky. Others build under a temporary carport structure from WalMart.

I moved into a dilapidated old house about twelve years ago. I was recently divorced, and short on cash to fix the place up. For years it was all I could do to keep the wolf from the door. Here's a picture of the door of the dilapidated garage: Doors off the hinges, broken glass, daylight streaming through the roof, holes big enough for stray cats to crawl through. No electricity, no lock on the door.

But last summer I changed all that! New roof (and new plywood sheeting under the shingles!), paint on the bare wood, glass in the windows, locks on the door, and a new electric panel wired up from the house. Why, for only a thousand dollars I was ready to build a cheap boat.

I started transferring tools that had been stored in my basement out to the shop. I built a new work bench, and bought storage totes for tools, and as fall turned to winter I installed a cozy little wood-burning stove.

But just when I started building all this momentum, the Job kicked in and robbed me of free time. I teach public school, and those kids take every last drop of energy. When I come home after a day at school, I'm just beat. And then there's dinner to make and chores to do and papers to grade, and I didn't get much done all winter long, even though there's a cozy little wood-stove in the shop.

At least the shop was in shape. When spring came I would be ready to start making sawdust.