Sabbatical Day 8–The Weather and the Flagpole

The weather is wrecking havoc with my flagpole. Usually it’s really dry in Denver, and I hadn’t been worried about setting up outside and building a flagpole. However rain is in the forecast far too many days, and we’ve had light showers or heavy thunderstorms too often. The jig I built is trash, so scrap $30 and a few hours of work there. Add in the volunteering on Tue/Thur and my plans are slightly wrecked.

I need to rethink things and also plan better moving forward.

First, I think that to taper the flagpole with the jig, I need to get that done in fairly short order. I’m thinking 2 days max to set things up, measure and align the jig, and then cut the posts. If I can do that, then I can always store the pieces inside for a few days until the next step.

Second, that means I need to plan for a couple days of work around the volunteering. I’m scheduled for Tue/Thur, this week and next, which messes things up a bit. I’m thinking I need to move or cancel next Tue’s shift and try to get this moving. Then I can pick up more volunteer shifts after that.

Last, I need to re-examine exactly what I need to do for the tapering and get prepared. Today’s plans, being tired, and having a speaking engagement tonight, mean that I’m going to re-watch the video, plan out the work, write it down, and also order a few other supplies. I’m also thinking to start moving some rocks where the base will go and get that prepped while I have a few half days.

I’m also going to buy a new miter saw. This project, Father’s Day, and a little drooling are giving me a good excuse.

Those are the plans early in the morning.

The Results

How did the day go?

Bad. As soon as I got back from PT, I was doing some planning on paper when the thunder started. I thought I might do a touch of stuff outside, but no go. I iced the knee a bit and watched the DVD for the flagpole again, making some notes so that I understood exactly what I needed to do. I have a better idea of how to get the jig set up and cut things quickly.

It was sprinkling outside as I measured some space in the garage to see if I could store wood. I could, so I went shopping. First I ordered the glue from Amazon. I’m not sure how quickly I’ll need it, but I will need it and I don’t want more delays.

Next I packed up and went to Lowes. I’ve been eyeing miter saws, trying to decide between a 12” saw, a 10” slider, or splurge on a 12” slider. On one hand I’d like to invest in some nice tools. On the other hand, I don’t know if I need to. I’m still an amatuer, and not sure how mich “fine” work I’ll do. I was really thinking the Hitachi C12FCH 12” saw, after seeing some good reviews. However it doesn’t have indent adjustments and that worries me if it’s not square. I can adjust things, but I’d like to have it easy.

The DeWalt 12” is pricey (the slider is crazy), but then I was wondering if I needed 12”, and if I spent $250 on the DeWalt, should I just go $400 for the Hitachi slider. Part of my concern was that most of these are large, needing 24”x24” in some cases. Most space than I want to give up.

Then I saw a few nice reviews on 10” sliders, including the Kobalt Lowes brand. At $200, that’s hard to pass up, and width often matters more to me than height. So I decided to hit Lowes and grab one, along with the flagpole wood. I spent a few minutes looking thought the 16’ and 12’ boards to get some that were quartersawn, hoping to prevent some movement.

I got back, and in sprinkling rain, I unloaded wood. That was about it for the sabbatical. I had an engagement at the Denver Women in Technology group, and that was my evening.

Tomorrow is up early for my first Habitat Build.