I put the ladder on the outside and scurried up to the hole to square up the hole. Then I tried putting the wall thimble in. One little corner was being balky. So, as I tried to manipulate it, the feet of the ladder base decided to go somewhere else. The top end skiied down the wall, and I came down with it. I skinned up my knees on the packing crate the ladder was standing on, and finally got pitched off about table-top height to the gravel driveway. Thonked my noggin, but got right up. Dressed my cuts, took some tylenol for my bruises, and called it a day. It was almost 7:00.
I went into town to get some supper, and then over to Newport, KY, to do some shopping. Got a nice new book. Tried to phone a few folks from my cell, but nobody was biting. So I went out to the holler and read for a while, then turned in. It was a beautiful night, but . . . it got way cold.
Fiddled around this morning, then went into town to meet
siege for lunch. Then he came out to the holler to help me. We got the thimble plate installed, the tee support bracket up, some random caulking around stuff, and one broken spot in the barbed wire fence repaired. Not bad for four hours' work. He insisted on doing all the outside ladder work -- his almost-31 years did better than my now-53 years would have.I appreciated his help and enjoyed his company. He still worries me to death, but he's making progress. He's still employed making cat food, and everything is easier when you're working.
If the weather is good, I'll be back out at Wilderstead next Friday, I think -- just for the day. It's getting too cold for me to stay overnight in an unheated cabin. And I can only work 3-4 hours at a stretch before I get all pooped and dizzy from ladder work. But I do need to get a 24' ladder, for sure.