Sanding in the Snow

I got up fairly early yesterday (for a Sunday) intending to get some work done before football. My first plan was to get the top off Tia's horse teeter-totter and replace it with new bracing. There was a hole in the old one where a horse had stepped through.

I pulled out the nails, using two hammers to pry them up. It was slow, but in the cold, and light wind, I managed to get them all out in 30-45 minutes and the top off. I cut that up and threw it away. No saving that piece of wood.

The old frame had long braces along the thirds, and a few cross braces, but very few. I had thought there wasn't much bracing underneath, and I'd bought a bunch of wood.

I decided to add more cross braces. I measured, and cut, a bunch of wood, screwing these in. I seemed like a good idea, and I got one of the thirds done.

However as I cut the pieces from my 10ft board (should have opened this and gotten 8ft boards), it started to snow. And blow. By the end, as I was trying to screw things in, I was slightly miserable, so I knocked off. I did add 2 additional braces between each one, which gives me about 6" unsupported. Hoping that works well.

However I didn't stop. I pulled out the sports rack into the lee by the open garage door, broke out the sander, and proceeded to burn through 4 pads trying to get it smooth and ready to stain. I think it was ready to stain, but it got cold and with football on, decided not to stain it right then. Perhaps this week at night.