Saturday, February 12, 2011

Hillbilly Lifestyle - Shelves!

Now Playing -    
Storytime by Nick Cave

Life -  
 
 Linz has had a few dentist appointments this week, the first to get a few x-rays and general condition, and they found two small cavities, as well as four horribly impacted wisdom teeth. So yesterday she had the fillings done and will get the wisdom teeth out in a month. While she was getting drilled, I decided to go and get some wood and screws. (Innuendo alert!) We've had a few places that could really use a shelf or two, and while we are trying to live cheap and light out here, a few comforts do help.
So I wandered around Home Depot for a while comparing prices. It kind of blows my mind how much simple boards can be. To make the ones I would need, it'd cost somewhere between $40 and $120 dollars just for the wood. Then I noticed the stacks of 1"x3"s in the bulk wood section. They're usually used for things like filler between deck boards and... I have no idea. They're long skinny boards and I'm not very manly.

What is important about 'em though is that they're pretty straight, decent looking, if you're a bit picky, and they cost $1.16 for an eight foot section. So I picked up enough wood to make the shelves, including a strip along the bottom for reinforcement and the screws for the brackets (Which we bought at Wally World for a buck a pop the night before) for less than thirty dollars including the cost of the brackets.
They aren't the sturdiest shelves in the world, and they won't win any beauty contests even if we get around to painting them this spring, but they're serviceable and I built four in about an hour.


I also took a long nap, which kind of canceled out the work I did towards my list for my days off.


Writing - 
I started my final revisions on Mr. Pale while I was waiting for Linz at the dentist. Got some funny looks from the septuagenarians next to me, but I'm excited about this pass!

The Last Sentence -     
But this man is something of a different beast altogether.   
From - "Mr. Pale Steps Out" (WIP)

5 comments:

Steve at Random said...

The word is not "hillbilly"...it's "frugal." I admire your ability to live frugally and still accomplish what you want. That is a good trait that has been lost among many Americans today, much to there own detriment. The shelves look fine and sturdy. That's all they need to do.

The Grows said...

I am all for cheaper ways to make things. Way to be savey!!!!

randymeiss said...

I like the Lego display, looks like some kind of undersea lair. Your muppet is sporting some very stylish neck wear. I'd say something nice about your shelves, but the two previous commentators took care of that. Cheers!

Steve at Random said...

I read your comment yesterday on Facebook about Valentines Day. I think you should elaborate and make it into a blog post. I'm sure it will generate lots of comments as well.

randymeiss said...

YEAH! So those of us cave-men who refuse to set up a Facebook account can read your insightful thoughts as well.