Liam’s away, Emma and Karin were off to shop and I stayed at home with an old friend. We’ve been through some real times together and today I helped out as best I could. It was a healing time and now as I sit looking at some photos, I wonder who got the real benefit from today.

We talked for a bit; actually I talked and my pal listened and took it all in. That’s what good friends do, right?  She’s been with us for a long time, almost 24 years, and she’s carried the whole family on her back, smiling all the while!  Well, today it was time for a bit of payback.  It was time for appreciation and a little bit of mental therapy.

We started out the other day as some damage and some time had begun to show that it was time for a rub down.  It started with a light polish at 180 and then we dropped to an 80 grit on the gunwales.  It may be just me, but I don’t like to go to virgin wood on a recondition, especially of this nature.  To me, it’s great to be protective but the old finish has to show through somewhere.  Just a hint of a reminder of where this beauty came from.  So from an 80, through 120, 180, and onto a 220 grit we went very slowly to ensure the matters of repair, finish, and character were not compromised.

Today she was oiled twice and rubbed briskly with a pile rag to make certain the oil was almost scored into the grain.  A time to soak in and then a second coat which I’ll allow to soak overnight.  “Red” will definitely require another overhaul down the road as like my own, her skin is cracking, and showing signs of age!  That’s a story for another day and hopefully one that I’ll be able to tell another day.  Until then, I’ve done my best to help her along so she can talk to our kids one day when one of them needs a listening ear!