Fondue Friday

Today was declared FONDUE FRIDAY by the crew. I spent much of the day out of the shop but when I returned in the late afternoon the remnants of the cheeze and chocolate fondues were still on the lunch table and the chocolate was all gone. The crew obviously had indulged in an LOT of chocolate and sugar for spirits were very,very high and the work seemed to be going at a frantic pace. The result was that the ship was almost painted by quitting time and looking very fine. The welding crew had done lots of work as well.

The Treasure Quest sign had also been polished off and was looking mighty fine.

By noon on Monday we will be able to begin moving pieces out of the shop to make room for a whole new batch of features.

-grampa dan

Easier than ever

It still amazes me how easy it is to communicate regarding project details these days compared to how it was in years past. Today I needed to convey details of how netting would attach to our structure to a supplier in Connecticut. years ago it would have meant taking some pictures, going to town to have them delveloped, then making notes, packing them up and sending them off by courior. the process would have taken a great deal of effort and time. Later we did the same process via fax but the resulting scans were poor at best.

Instead I sauntered outside for a few quick digital pictures, popped the camera card into my computer, brought up the files in Photoshop and quickly made a few scribbles and notes using my digital pen. Then I sized the photos, attached them to an email and sent them off. My supplier's response followed shortly after. Amazing!

I love using modern technology. It makes things a whole lot easier and faster!

-grampa dan

Bamboo-zl'd

It's always fun to try something new- even better when it turns out nice. Today we tackled the first of the sculpted bamboo posts which would hold up the rope bridge to the treehouse. Because the Skallywag Bay Adventure Park is in the Caribbean we wanted to include some surfaces in the project that looked like they were indigenous to the area. As with all of the other structures the connections to other elements and the ground were in 'cast brass with rivets'.

Other projects of all sizes were on the go all through the shop as well. The two small tikis got the last of their paint jobs, first with the dry brushing of the bright colors.

Once that paint had dried the painting crew applied the glazes and patinas to finish off the small tikis.

Tomorrow they will be moved outside to make room for more.

-grampa dan