My Free Elm Wood Floor Job

Well, by the end of this week I should be at a point that brings me back up to even. The long days have paid off, and Monday of next week should be an 8-9 hour day.

Right now I am working on a job that cupped. It is 4-inch elm with wonderful color! It has been some time since I have worked with elm; just look at the floor:

Here is the deal on this one: As nuts as things are right now, this is a free job. The folks that own the home are good people; he has 20 years of service in the Army and two grandsons overseas right now, and it hit a heartstring for me. His wife talked about the years that her husband was gone in those 20 years, she was Mom, Dad and anything else that needed to be done around a home while her husband was off to protect our country. He was in a few conflicts over the years, so here I am doing the job.

It is only 700 feet and not that hard of a task. I hit the floor with 50 on a 45-degree to get it flat, came back with 50, 80 and soft plate. (I'll post about what I call a "soft plate" later this week.) The funny thing that came about this week was with my friend Daniel Boone. Like I said, it has been some time for me to work with elm, and I was not sure if I needed to go to 120 to make slick. So, I texted Boone and asked if it would be okay to stop at 80, then plate the floor. His text back was "Yes, and Sycamore too"-a little LOL, if you will. Do you recall the joke about the guy who has a sick friend and calls 911? Well, they ask where he is and he cannot spell "Sycamore," so he tells the person, "Just forget it! I will drag him to Elm and you can get him there." Wayne and Boone being dumb again, but it put a smile on my face.

You know, that is what is so cool about friends and the outstanding folks we can meet via the NWFA. I have made lifelong friends all because of the NWFA and a floor sander. When you need a lift or help with a job, someone will be there for you. Over the years, I see the need to hold your friends close and your family closer.

My youngest is done with high school this week; at this point Kim and I will have no kids in school, now college is a the next adventure. If you will allow a soapbox moment... Where does it all go? Time is not on our side, it will not stop or even slow down; so keep this on your mind and heart. Children are not the whole world, but children make the world whole. Enjoy time with your family and make sure that a job is not your world.

Okay, off the box now. I have to go put down the seal coat and then run to trim out one more. It is an easy day, and it feels so good to be even again. It has been a hard 3 weeks of getting back to the top of the workload. I don't think I told you about Clifford-he is a laid-off trim carpenter and worked with me on a tile job last week just to see if he would like to start hardwood and tile. He is a good hand with skills. He is taking care of some things for his Daddy this week, but next week he will work with me on a tearout install job. So that is very nice, I think we will work okay together. He never just stood around or had to be told what next... He just said I am going to do this, is that okay? At one point I had to work alone in a tight area; well he went out and started to pick up and clean up the tools-that's my kind of man. He was taken aback with all the tools we have in the trailer, he said "You always have this much on the job?" Well, if you do not have it you will need it, so I just keep it all in order and we never have to say, "Dang, I left it at the shop."

So that is good news for the week, and the next huge task for me is to get the yardwork done. My grass is so tall that I been thinking of taking it for hay; cut it up and rake it into wind rows for rolls of feed. No joke, it is tall right now. To make it easy my plan is to run the brush hog over it so the mower does not have to work so hard.

Well, I am off to work. Have a great day.