Welcome to the weekend! David and I are at the bar, and we are both looking forward to enjoying a nice beverage, maybe some food. We will be celebrating a cool dry day, after the weatherpeople changed their forecast from much-needed rain to clear skies. We will also try to score some bonus points from Linda.
Your Friday prompt for Stream of Consciousness Saturday is “peace/piece.’” Use one, use them both (for bonus points), use them any way you’d like. Enjoy!
If we were having a beer, you’d be in a good mood.
“Good afternoon, Dan. Cheryl, please bring my friend a cold glass of Modelo.”
“Please? You said ‘please’, David.”
“I did. I was a little harsh last week with Curley, and I don’t want to make the same mistake with you.”
“Are you having a John Howell’s Special?”
“Yes. A glass of his signature bourbon, a snifter of seltzer and a glass of ice.”
“And a couple cherries?”
“Well, yes, of course. If you don’t mind.”
“I don’t.”
“Okay, now that I can slip a word in, good afternoon, David. I’m happy to see you in such a good mood. What’s up?”
“The weather! As of Wednesday, the forecast was calling for five days of ‘A chance of showers.’ Today, it’s blue skies and puffy clouds.”
“Here you go, boys. A collection of glasses for David and a cold beer for Dan. I have to go check the patio crowd.”
“Cheers, David.”
“Cheers, Dan. I’ve been meaning to ask you if you have your snow blower ready for winter.”
“Not yet, I’ll get it to the shop next week, maybe the week after.”
“Isn’t that late for you?”
“It is, but I haven’t finished repairing my trailer. It should be done soon, though.”
“Repairing? What happened?”
“The bed is two pieces of plywood, one on each side of a center panel of galvanized steel.”
“Okay, I know you like to fill in the backstory, Dan, but those facts don’t answer my question.”
“Wow, you really are trying to be nice today.”
“Yes, you know, give peace a chance and all that, horse…feathers. About that repair?”
“The plywood needed to be replaced.”
“And you’re doing this yourself?”
“Yes. It’s not that big a job.”
“I’m going to regret this, but what was or is involved?”
“Well, I had the trailer in the garage, which allowed the plywood to dry out, so I could find the screws.”
“Okay, Dan. Let me stop you right there. Could you give me the Reader’s Digest condensed version of this story?”
“I can, but that’s an important piece of the story.”
“Why?”
“Because, it turns out, there were no screws.”
“Don’t tell me it was glued in place.”
“Nope. It was nailed.”
“Nailed? How do you nail something to steel? The trailer is made from steel, isn’t it?”
“It is. Galvanized steel. Powder actuated nailers can shoot nails into steel.”
“I can’t imagine the sound when you pull those out. It must be like fingernails on a chalkboard.”
“You guys are showing your age. Schools don’t have chalkboards anymore. You want something to eat?”
“Yes, Cheryl. Two orders of Teagan’s Mushrooms.”
“You want another round when they’re ready.”
“I think we’ll be ready by then. Dan might even be finished with his story.”
“There we go. We’re getting closer to the David we know and love.”
“Yes, yes…the story…we’re not getting any younger.”
“I didn’t pull the nails out, I cut them off.”
“With what?”
“A die grinder.”
“Of course. Will you nail the replacement plywood in? I assume you own one of those powder activated…”
“Actuated.”
“Actuated — whatever — do you own one of those?”
“I do, but no. I will screw the new plywood in place, when it’s ready.”
“You mean cut, right?”
“Cut and painted. And, I had to spray the steel support ribs with Cold Galvanizing Compound after I cut the nails off.”
“When will that be done.”
“Everything is painted. I should be able to attach the boards on Monday or Tuesday.”
“Here we go. Two orders of mushrooms. I’ll be right back with the drinks.”
“Thanks, Cheryl. How long do you think this repair will last, Dan?”
“Well, the unpainted plywood lasted almost twenty years. This should last longer.”
“Maybe I should have asked how long you think you will last.”
“Ha! Let’s just say this is the last plywood I’m putting down in that trailer.”
“Here’s to longevity!”
If you’re interested in the process of replacing the floor of the trailer, you can skip through the slide show. Otherwise, you can view the gallery below that. There’s also a little music, appropriate for the week we’ve had. Of course, my attempt at advertising follows that. If you want to see the die grinder in action, there’s an 8-second video here.
The last thing the trailer hauled was the plywood that would be its new floor 
Removing the plywood with prybars 
One of the plywood floorboards removed 
Rotted plywood 
Protruding nail 
Cutting the nails with a die grinder 
Cutting the nails with a die grinder 
Cleaning the frame 
Frame exposed and cleaned 
Spraying the rails with Cold Galvanizing Compound 
Spraying the rails with Cold Galvanizing Compound 
I sprayed all the parts that were worn by the old floor panels. 
The trailer is ready for a floor 
First cut was to clean up the edge of the plywood 
The plywood panels have been cut 
The inside edge of the plywood was beveled to reduce splintering 
New floor panels dry fit 
I cut the bevels by hand 
The bevels have been cut 
Ready for paint 
Painting the new panels 
Plywood panels with a new coat of paint
All five of my current books are now available in audio book form thanks to Amazon KDP’s Virtual Voice process. The voice is AI generated, but I can honestly say, it’s pretty darn good. The audio books are reasonably priced (all below $7 US) and, if you already own the Kindle version and want to add an audio version, you can do that for $1.99. There is a five-minute sample on the book page for each book. If you’re interested, click on any of the Dreamer’s Alliance book links below the image or on the link below for my latest book.
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