Free Woodworking Plans
Wood Boat Plans Knowledge Base
where can i get plans for a plywood boat and what is stitch and glue method for joining the wood? Why is quarter inch plywood to risky.How bout honeycomb method with quarter inch plywood sandwiched together with honeycomb structure in between. Also where can i get CAD viewer on the net.Can i submit a design to an engineer to test.Is honeycomb a proven method.I would like to make a boat about 12 to 14 feet long for fishing in lakes and able to attach at least a 9.9 outboard motor. Is fiberglass worth doing and how expensive is this technique.I thought I would use three coats of any kind of primer with three coats of marine paint or concrete (covering) paint on the hull or bottom of the boat.I was going to use brass screws also.I thought about using ribs and incorporate them into the seats to be out of the way.Also the seats would also substitute as storage boxes.I planned on making my own set of oars with three pieces of wood each.I also thought of attaching an upright seat to the bench type wooden seat I was going to install. Any help would be much appreciated.Thanks !!!!!!!!!!!
Does anyone have plans or know where to get them to build a small boat out of plastic wood? i would like to build a small boat out of plywood , plank construction or plastic wood. I can buy plastic wood here in my town and this makes sense but has anyone built a boat recently out of plastic wood.And what were the costs etc.
i am looking for plans to build a small fishing boat around 14 ft. with plywood or wood framed.? I hope to build with composîte wood or another type, not sure, but will have ribs on the inside of the boat.I think these are called chines. Anyway I want this boat to be lightweight enough to take off the back of a truck without too much trouble and then put into the water.I would like to use a small motor on this boat as well. My main use though is to use this boat for fishing.
A Mahogany wood, is it good material to construct for a wooden boat hull? i'm planning to construct a Single Hull wooden boat which has CAPACITY of 100 people. please help me to determine which good materials for my up coming project.
How do I obtain a hull identification number for a homemade boat in Ontario, Canada? I am planning on building a home made wood strip boat, and before I start, I am wondering if there is anyone who can help me figure out the steps to getting a hull identification number. The boat will be used/registered in Ontario Canada. Thanks.
A Mahogany wood, is it good material to construct for the wooden boat hull? , am I in the right choice? i'm planning to construct a single hull wooden boat which has CAPACITY of 100 people. please help me to determine the good materials for my up coming project.
Is epoxy absolutely necessary to waterproof a plywood boat and how thick should I make the bottom,flat part? I plan on building a plywood boat and will buy plans.But was wondering about the thickness of the plywood to use and can I just use regular plywood (exterior use type ) instead of marine plywood.And do I have to steam the plywood for bending into shape for the sides as the bottom will be flat?I plan to incorporate the ribs into the seats to cut down on the amount of plywood I use.I plan to use a thicker wood , probably planks or solid pieces of timber for the transom.Also I don't know if it is worth it to use epoxy for waterproofing the boat.I do plan now to use galvanized,stainless steel, bronze or brass screws.
A Mahogany wood, is it good material to construct for a wooden boat hull? , am I in the right choice? i'm planning to construct a Single Hull wooden boat which has CAPACITY of 100 people. please help me to determine which good materials for my up coming project.
How do I get the super shiny effect on my wood walls that I see on boats? I plan on staining my wood walls a deep red, I want to know what product I can use to give them a super shiny appearance..Are the wooden walls on some larger boats, veneers? or is it some kind of chemical that make them that shiny and smooth? I don't think it's a clear paint, it almost looks like a resin...anyone know what i'm talking about???
How would I attach a seat/bench to an old fiberglass hulled fishing boat? I have an old Edson 16 ft. fiberglass boat which has been converted to a fishing boat with 2 captain's chairs. I want to add a bench seat to the boat to be able to take the kids out fishing too but am not sure how to attach the wood framed bench (which I am planning on making) to the fiberglass floor of the boat. Does anyone have any ideas, suggestions, etc. I would assume that I could attach a wood framed bench to the floor using fiberglass/resin but I don't know how to do that. Is there an easier way?
old boat model i am making? i am planning to make a older boat like a boat used in columbus's time but i have a quick question( i dont want the boat to look exactly like it, this si my first ever model) can i have the front and back of teh boat curved or does the front have to be arrow head shaped to cut through the water???? one more question i am going to be using balsa wood.. is that a floatable object and can it be bent easily?? if it isnt the greatest thingt o use to build a model boat that will be used to float arond in the water and to just be admired what is the best object to build it with,that is cheap,and very easily bendible???
DIY boat paint or sealer? I am planning on building a flat-bottom boat about 12ft.max. (http://www.vintageprojects.com/boats/jon-boat.pdf) to use on a private pond. I wanted to know what I can use to paint, cover or seal the wood that is economical, easy to use and purchase. And does anyone recommend this boat?
Displacement question regarding boat building project.? My friend and I are planning to build a wood flat-bottom lake-type canoe. I have figured out dimensions but I can't find an equation for Water displacement vs. maximum weight. I am trying to figure out the relationship between the submerged hull and the weight within the boat. If you have an equation I can do the math. Equation should include Surface Area of the hull (or length x width or something to that effect), weight inside boat, and depth the boat will sit in the water for the given weight and area. Although I can do the math, here's the dimensions in case you want to play around with them. The Bottom flat panel is 96"x24" and at each end it has a triangle piece with a SA of 288 sq inch. Since these pieces taper upward to a point at 45 degrees, the net downward forced is reduced by half, so the total SA of the boat is 2(.5 *288) +2304=2592 in sq. Using an equation which I believe is incorrect I got 1131 lbs as a max capacity weight with 24" tall sides. Any help appreciated.
has anyone ever built their own woodstrip canoe? I was thinking about buying a canoe, then i saw some plans at Barnes and noble to build your own woodstrip canoe or birchbark canoe.I was wondering if anyone has ever done this and how much would it cost and if it was actually a good looking boat that works. I already have a bunch of woodworking tools so if you could tell me how much only the wood itself would cost or is it just cheaper to buy one?
i need to build a raft? hey i need raft plans that WILL WORK. rafts that can be built from old tires i found in the woods some spare wood and a couple small ropes. i really need to keep dry because we raft for a day then slee for 2 days then raft again. and we only have the clothes on my back so no wet. (does the boat go in the wahty?
Is this a good horror story? Into the Swamp The muddy, thick water was still below the rotted trees, the top of which seemed to block out the night sky. Haunting sounds rang through the darkness of the swamp, as the fog swept over the dreary land, setting an uncomforting mood. The ground was almost pure mud, mold covered the majority of it. A certain sick feel lived inside the swamp, which had no name. No human lived within 10 miles of it, and hardly anyone ever went in, for there was no purpose. Few animals lived in the area near regular land. Riley Black stumbled into this setting clutching a shotgun in his right hand and his injured right shoulder in his left hand. On his back was a carry on bag filled with $500,000, shotgun shells, and a flashlight. He limped, feeling as if he was too dizzy to continue, and he was going to collapse. A couple dozen yards in, he reached a dreary, cold body of water, and on the muddy banks of which sat an old, wooden ferry boat. It looked as if it wasn't able to stay afloat in the water. It creaked in an uncomfortable manner as Black put his left foot in. He sat down slowly, grabbed the oar, and set off. The wood on the boat, much like the trees in the swamp, was dead and rotted. He could barely see through the fog, but none the less, the oar continued to make it's way slowly through the muggy waters. He glanced up at the the tree tops as the boat skimmed through the water. Crows soared furiously through the foggy air, screaming at one another. His concentration was broken by a small tug on the oar. He looked down at the water. Moments passed. Nothing. Just as he started to continue, a figure leaped out of the water and clutched to the side of the ferry boat. Black looked over at what was trying to climb on to the boat. His body went still as he stared into the face of a decomposed, human-like creature. It's face was rotted away and boney, with green, dead skin. It's teeth were clearly visible through it's almost absent mouth. It's right eye was popped out more so than the left, and it's nose was just dead skin that wrapped tighly around the nose bone. It had a small amount of grey hair atop it's head. It made it's way onto the boat, revealing a skeleton like figure bundled up in old clothes much like a bum would wear. It gave a loud, horrifying, high-pitched shriek as it lunged toward Black. He snapped out of his trance and quickly grabbed the shotgun. He aimed and fired, hitting it right between the eyes. The creature fell off the boat and sank back into the water. He put the gun down and stared at the spot the monster had just stood. Sweat dripped down his face, and he breathed uncontrollably. "I heard a gunshot over there!" said a voice from the entrance of the swamp. "Aw Christ. How'd they track me?" he thought. He picked up the oar and paddled as fast as he could. Within minutes, he reached the opposite bank. He hopped out of the boat and into the mud, which was about four inches deep. Gathering his stuff together, he looked around , thinking about his direction. He walked a a bit aways further. "You lost?" said a woman's voice. Black turned to see a smiling old woman in a sundress and hat. Both the items she was wearing were covered in a flower covered pattern, which definately didn't match the place she wasin. Black's temper quickly came into play, for he was greatly impatient at the moment, but before he could say anything, she interuptted him. "The cabin your lookin' for is just o'er that direction" said the woman pointing, then she turned and walked down a muddy path. Black turned to see an old cabin. "That was not there before. Who ar-". She was gone. "That's impossible!", He thought, frantically looking around the path she had traveled. He stood there for a moment before shaking it off and heading towards the cabin. * * * Earlier that day, in the City Diner in a small town in Louisiana, Jackie Randle sat waiting and enjoying his burger. Randle was a tall, pale guy with a ragged look to him. His old, paint covered Pantera shirt and ripped jeans didn't say much about him. He finished his food and leaned back. "I hope this guy Hanley's bringin' is good. He obviously sucks at arrivin' on time, I don't think he's that responsable to pull somethin' off like this." he thought. Just then, a man in jeans and a plad shirt walked in to the quiet lttle diner. He was a regular sized guy, handsome face and combed back hair. He looked like a dirty man. one who cared little about hygene. It looked like he wasn't sure about what he was doing. He had certain nervousness about him. Randle looked up, "Guess you're the guy I'm lookin' for?". The man show a toothy grin said,"I guess so. You Jackie Randle?". Randle nodded and stuck his hand out. The man shook his hand pleasently and sat at the opposite seat in the booth. "You gonna order anything? You Hungry?", asked Randle. Almost insantly the man replied, "No. I'm just here to get the plan together. Nothing else." Randle hesitated before nodding. "Where's Hanley?" asked the man, who for some reason seemed to be getting impatient. "He'll meet us there," They sat there for an hour going over notes. Randle said, starting to wrap it up," So let's go over the plan, Hanley'll walk into the bank, gun in pocket, and sit in the waiting area. You'll walk in and go up to the tellar farthest from the front door. That's when I walk in and and immediatly take out the security gaurds. You stick up that tellar there and tell 'em to open the vault. Hanley'll come into play if anyone trys to get near us, in which he'll pick off the gaurd or whoever's tryin' to be a hero. We'll improvise after we get out of there, but Hanley's bringing his car and he's got an old cabin out in a swamp about a half an hour from here. You got it?" The man nodded and asked "We're supposed to be there in twenty minutes. I got the guns in my trunk and we can walk from here, it's only three blocks." Randle gave a thumbs up. "Man, this guy's weird, but he seems to know what he's doing. I'm not gonna question Hanley. This guy- wait what's his name?" He thought. "Excuse me, uh, guy?" Randle said catching up with him,"What's you're name? We've been talking for like an hour and I still don't know". The sharply dressed man hesitated, then looked up ,"Black. Riley Black." * * * The fog seemed to grow thicker, and Black knew it was only a matter of time before those cops found him. He immediatly went to the corner of the two story cabin's first floor and sat down. He sat down and pulled out a pocket knife. He took a long breath before sinking it into the hole in his right shoulder. He let out a silent scream as blood seeped out and down his arm, and within ten seconds, the bloody bullet fell to the filthy cabin floor. He then cut off part of his shirt and wrapped it around the already festering wound. He checked the bag to make sure the goods were still there and he quickly yanked up the shotgun and went up the stairs. There were four empty bedrooms upstairs, all of which had the same feel as the swamp. The cabin was hundreds of years old and hadn't been inhabited for about fifty years. He stood at the broken window and waited for about ten minutes before the two cops found the cabin. One stayed outside and and the other quietly went in. Black squinted and pointed the end of the shotgun out the window and and picked the cop off. The bullet went into his heart. Black quickly turned to the bedroom door and waited for cop two to come rollin' through the door. Since he had shot the other cop, cop two was surely on his way. As soon as he came through the door, he was on the ground and bleeding from the neck. Black walked over to the dying man and looked down at him. He raised the gun, aimed, looked away, and fired. Blood was now all over the walls of the little bedroom. Black wiped the blood off his face and sat in the far corner of the room near a closet. The closet was locked and Black was a little too shooken up to go looking around in the old house. Darkness wasn't far off, the fog was still holding strong. He began to get dizzy, his head started to wobble. He passed out right there in the corner. "Wake up!" Black heard the voice of Hanley. He blinked a few times before looking across the room. There stood Randle and Hanley. They had a lantern with them and two guns, and that was about it. "What's wrong with you?", yelled Hanley,"Killing the cops and not disposing of the bodies or their boat! You and Randle go fix it, now!" Black stood up, anger boiling inside of him,"Why in God's name would you ever choose this swamp? I had a zombie-thing leap outta the water like Jason, I saw a ghost woman just walkin' around in the swamp, I- I'm freakin' out here!" Hanley, looking annoyed, said "You're just a little worked up. Now do what I said." Black moved towards the dooor and turned around. "Watch him!" said Black and he walked out of the room. Hanley looked greatly confused. Randle and Black walked down the stairs. Black noticed that they had hung lanterns up in nearly ever room of the cabin, including the backdoor where the cop came through. They walked out that same backdoor and stopped. "Black, I'll go do somethin' with the boat, you go do somethin' with Robocop over near the tree." He watched Randle walk into the black with his lantern. He fished for his flashlight in his front pocket and proceeded out of the lantern's light. He walked over to the cop's body, but stop after almost stepping on a dead rabbit. He looked down and studied it. It's flesh was half gone and it was missing a back leg. He got a bit closer and squinted. The rabbit's body twitched! He jumped slightly back, but then felt kinda stupid. Just then, the rabbit began to twitch violently, then it stopped. It rose up on it's three remaining legs. Black backed up and followed the rabbit with the light, and he watched as it hopped over to the cop's body. It paused for a moment before looking at Black and then grabbing the cop's collar by the mouth and somehow dragging it far off into the woods. Black stood there in absolute shock. The moment was then broken by Randle's screaming. Black quickly ran over to the water bank to see all three boats and Randle sinking rapidly in the mud. Black lunged forward to grab his hand, but was stopped as the mud began to move, as if something was crawling through it. Suddenly, a figure of mud began to form from the ground up. It stood, pure mud, about ten feet tall. It had no facial features, it was just a basic human-like shape. It looked up at the moon and a mouth began to open up, letting out a peircing howl. Black shot at the mud monster, but the bullets did nothing but get lost in the figure. It looked down and let it's body fall on Randle and the boats, all of them disappearing, drowning in the deep, deep mud. Then, the muddy waterside returned to how it was before any soul had touched. It regained it's normal shape. The swamp grew silent. The fog stopped dead in the air. Black stood in one spot, trying to collect his thoughts. He looked up at the spot where Randle met his demise. His eyes grew wide at what was now happening. He screamed as the water began to move, as figures arose. Creatures, much like the one Black dealt with on the ferry boat, limped out of the water. The creatures caught site of Black and headed in his direction. They all very much resembled his ferry boat friend. Rotted flesh, bolging eyes, skeleton figures. Moaning. Dazed. They were zombies. He turned and ran toward the cabin as fast as he could manage to move. He began to slow down when he heard the voice of a woman singing. A dreary, beautiful voice filling the air. He couldn't make out the words. He looked over to the area of the sound, where he saw the woman in the sundress slowly walking and singing. She stopped and turned to him. His spine began to shake and the hair on his body stood up. She smiled for a moment, before her now transparent body began to quiver and fall to the ground. Her flesh began to fpeel away from her bones, leaving a skeleton in a sundress lying in am pile flesh. Then within a split second, it disappeared. He hesitated and continued towards the cabin. "Hanley we gotta get outta here now!" He said running up the stairs. He ran into the room, but was stopped at the sight of the the corpse of the cop feeding off of Hanley. "Man, Hanley, I told you to watch him." He said raising the shotgun. The corpse looked up at him. It had not yet rotted like the other zombies, but it still had those menacing bolging eyes. It hissed at him, right before taking a bullet to the forehead. He walked over to Hanley's body and put a bullet in it's head before it could change into one of those things. He peered out the window. The zombies stumbled toward the back door and into the cabin. He decided to wait out night and swim, seeing as how all three boats were under water. He'd sit in his corner of the room and pick off whatever came through that door. He had enough ammo to take down hundreds of them, and he had all the time in the world. * * * The 1978 corvette flew down the road. So fast the cop cruisers barely kept up. Randle sat in the passenger seat, turning around after every reload to shoot at the cop cars through the shattered back window. Black sat in the back doing the same while Hanley drove. "Where's the swamp?" Black asked reaching for more ammo. "Well, I didn't think they'd keep up like this, so one of you two has to get the loot and tuck and roll at the next sharp turn. The swamp entrance is marked by a tree with a red spray painted X. Get in the swamp, there's two ferry boats. Take one across the water, cause that only way to get to and back from the otherside, and get to the cabin. It's about a ten minute walk from the opposite bank." Hanley said quickly. Black sighed "I'll do i-" but was interupted when a bullet hit him in the shoulder. He grabbed his arm and fell below the window. "They got me! They got me bad!". He looked down at his arm, which was pouring blood everywhere. He moaned in pain looked up a the ceiling of the car. "Can you still do this?" asked Hanley. "Yeah, yeah, just give me a second!" he cried still looking at the ceiling. "We don't have a second! We're turning now!" yelled Hanley. "Ok!" Black responded as he struggled up to the broken back window. Randle tossed him the bag with the money and Black grabbed his gun. They turned in an area where trees blocked the cops view of them, and vice versa. "It's now or never" he thought, and he lept from the back of the car, rolling into a ditch on the side of the road. * * * Riley Black sat in the corner of the abandoned swamp cabin, picking off every zombie that poked it's head through the door. His eyes were bloodshot, his hair was a mess, and he'd sat in that corner for the past few hours, just shooting. The amount of them calmed down, eventually, there were none coming through the bedroom doorway. He sat for a minute before rising and walking to the window. Daylight was soon coming. He walked to the doorway and looked down the steps. Nothing. He walked outside. Nothing was there. It was if everything had stopped. He walked over to the side of the water. "You're gonna die in here, Riley, but it's you're only chance." he muttured to himself. He put the shotgun in the bag, trigger out, and slung it on his back. He took the longest breath he ever took and dived in the water. It was about a ten minute boat ride, so he knew he;d be swimming for awhile. He swam for ten minutes without any truoble. The sudden hault of all these horrid events worried him, but this peace didn't last for long. In an instant, the sky melted into pitch black, and with the already hard to see through fog, he felt lost within the middle of the water. He stopped and doggy paddled to keep afloat. He looked around frantically in the dark, until his eyes stopped upon a light in the fog. He waited for a moment, as an empty ferry baot with a lantern on the pole float towards him. "This is the swamp playin' tricks on me." He thought "But once again, no choice at all." He pulled himself up on the boat and looked around. Nothing strange. He grabbed the oar and paddled faster than he'd ever paddled before. He came within sight of the bank he first entered the water on. He remained very alert, looking around at everything in his path. He reached land, grabbed the lantern, and quickly fled throughthe swamp. "This is way to easy of an escape." he thought in fear. He reached the entrance of the swamp and for the first time in about twelve hours, he smiled. He was yards from freedom of the horrific events that took place here. Suddenly, his foot was caught on something. He quickly glanced down to see a hand breaking through the Earth and clutching tightly to his ankle. He tried to shake free but the grip was too strong. He reached for the shotgun in his bag, but he had no ammo left. He paniced. He looked around as zombies began to pour onto the path. They edged closer. He fell backwards onto the ground. Three of them pin him down, while one of them opened it's decayed mouth. "The swamp loves to play tricks on me," he thought, "it put me so close to freedom, and just took it away with whatever evil has resided in this place. Sick, twisted games these waters play.". This was the final thought of Riley black before the creatures that pinned him down began to drag his feasted corpse back into the darkness. Back into the waters. Back into the swamp. Think your a bitch
Need your help- Writing first draft of novel need some feedback here is part of a chapter-? Chapter 4 A Chance of a Lifetime “Aaron, where is everybody?” I asked as I saw Aaron sitting alone in front of the whaleback ship.“You know how it is Kyra—they had their own things to do. Last night they came because they were curious who I was, um interested in. That’s all.” Alone at last! Alone—with a dragon! Mister caramel lightly dipped in dark chocolate eyes! The eyes that I felt I could meld into…“Kyra. Kyra!”“ Huh?” “ Am I so boring that you have to day dream when you’re with me?” he smirked, gently caressing my cheek.“No! No! I was just thinking.” Whew, if he only knew the affect his eyes had on me. “So Aaron, what are we going to do tonight? Jump in the lake, cascade over mountains, or talk.” I was so busy staring into his eyes that I he had already changed into his dragon form and was flipping me onto his back.“ Aiii…” I screamed, surprised.“Let’s talk” I heard him say in my head as we flew low over the water.“Boat! Boat!” was all I could scream as a boat quickly appeared in our path. I closed my eyes not wanting to see the impact. Instead, I felt the slight shift in Aaron’s body as he coasted out of its path.“You can open your eyes now.” he gurgled and snorted. Was he laughing!“Ya go ahead and laugh at me” I fumed, “You wouldn’t think it so funny if we would have crashed.” His gurgling and snorting continued, he was laughing so hard his body was shaking, tickling me as I hung on.“Stop.. hahaha… that!” We landed at top of the Aerial Lift Bridge. The glow of the Duluth/Superior lights were all around us as I gawked at the pristine beauty of the lights, lake and the night. I could see small white shapes floating, reflecting the city lights on the lake. “Those are seagulls.”“Seagulls? I thought they would find some warm, dry place to sleep on land.” “ Seagulls are opportunists. They sleep in their nests when the have young otherwise they sleep anywhere they are away from their predators, and I don’t think Lake Superior has many predators that can eat a live healthy seagull.”“ Do you eat seagulls?”“ Na, some of the others do but for me they’re too feathery. Yuck! Last time I tried one it took me weeks to get the feathers out of my teeth!” I hope he brushes his teeth! Yuck! Carefully, he set me down on the beam he had been standing on—changing back. The winds off the lake scared me, as they blew I had to struggle to maintain my footing.“Aaron!” I cried as my feet slipped out from under me. I was falling!“Gotcha!” he said in my ear. We were both sitting down, me in his lap, and his strong-arms tightly around me. We sat there in silence—watching. Watching—together—in his arms—clouds float by, the ships cast in darkness on the lake- rolling with a glimmer of light. “Kyra, what did you want to ask me?” His breath tickled my ear.“Huh? Oh!” I said as his voice seeped through the fog of my mind. “I wanted to know why are there dragons here and why this area? In all the books I read, dragons exist everywhere but here!” “ Dragons like humans are everywhere. It’s just we choose to live hidden—if most humans knew we really did exist, they would try to put us in zoo’s and dissect us; trying to find out whether we were more like lizards or snakes. Through history we have learned that humans kill what they are afraid of, even themselves…” I kissed him. On the cheek- I couldn’t help myself- he seemed so, sad. “We would rather live in our dragon form, but with humans, living almost everywhere on the earth—if we wanted to survive—we didn’t have a choice.”I started to think about what might happened if someone, anyone who was not willing to keep their secret proved Aaron and his kind existed and who they were as humans.“Aaron, can you choose what you look like as a human?”“No, we can only choose the age.”“Your age! How old are you, as a dragon?” I never thought about how long the legends said dragons could live. I guess I just assumed he was my age even in dragon. “Hmm.. about 225 years old. Give or take a couple years.”“ 225! Than why are you hanging out with me? I’m a little young aren’t I?”Aaron explained to me how dragon age and human age is not the same; just like a dog’s age is not really the same as a human. That in approximation of dragon age he was about the same age as me and had as much to learn about the world as I did. “Feel better?” he laughed, hugging me tighter.“Yes much better, I was starting to think all I was to you was a plaything.”“Never! Are you hungry?”“ A little. Why are you?”“ Famished!” Did he say famished? Oh no! I never asked him if he ate humans! “Umm—you don’t eat people do you?” “Only those that annoy me.” He laughed, teasingly. Whew, that was a relief. Feeling playful—I leaned close to his ear and whispered, “I don’t annoy you do I.” Aaron grabbed me and threw me up into the air of the brisk moonlit night. My scream lost in my throat. He won’t let me fall to my death- right? I was only teasing. I felt the wind blow against my body—suffocating me as I tried to scream-I was going to pass out! I watched as the ground rose to meet me. “Aaron WHAT did I do?” I tried to scream when all of a sudden I was jerked hard upright, thrown into the air once again and landed safely on Aarons back. “I’m sorry; I didn’t mean to scare you. Let’s go eat!” Eat—eat—does he think I feel like eating after almost crashing to my death because of him?“I’m NOT hungry. Humph…” I said, kicking him in the side.“I said I was sorry—what more do you want?” Does he think I am going to talk to him, after what he did?“Kyra, I was just playing. Please, please believe me when I tell you I would have never let anything happen to you!”“ PLAYING, PLAYING! YOU call that playing?”“ I guess to someone who can’t fly, I can understand how they wouldn’t think that as playing.”“ You got that right!” We landed in a secluded area on the rocky shores of Canal Park.“Where to?”“Follow my lead.” Aaron said once he changed in human form, holding my hand in his and led the way. We only had to walk a little ways before arriving at a restaurant. “Have you ever eaten here Kyra?” “Ya, the food’s yummy.” “Yummy?” “Yes, yummy.” He looked confused. Hasn’t he ever heard the word yummy before? He ordered a big steak with all the works, and I politely said, “The same!” as the server took our order. He looked surprised but not as surprised as I was for how bold I was being. Why not? Didn’t he throw me off the top of the Arial Lift Bridge? A girl can really work up an appetite once the shock wears off a near death experience. “I guess you’re afraid that this might be your last meal?” Aaron said as he laughed from across the table.“Aaron, what do people think when at school you’re in a wheelchair and out of school your not?”“I just make sure to avoid them. Usually after school I am at places they aren’t—unless of course they can change into birds.” “ Why the wheel chair? You don’t need it?”Aaron explained to me how he chose to be in a wheelchair at school; that he couldn’t walk—even if he tried. “Why? How can you walk one minute and than not the next? I don’t understand.” “We all do—sometime during our lives.” He looked so uncomfortable—as if he was telling me a deep dark secret. “So—how about those Twins,” I chirped. “Twins, aren’t they baseball? We’re in football season now.” I smacked my head with the palm of my hand. How could I forget it was football season? I lived on the Wisconsin-Minnesota border—all the rivalry going on between Packer and Viking fans was almost as interesting as the sport itself. Our talking ebbed as our food arrived— shoveling bite after bite as if we were starving in our hungry mouths. “We have to hurry or you’re going to be late!” Aaron said after he paid for our food and left a sizable tip for the server.We rushed out the door, running down the street towards the white and black lighthouse on Canal Park. “Why—are—we going there?” I asked Aaron when we were half way there.“People on the rocks,” was all he said as he grabbed my hand and hurried me along. With a flick of his wrist, I was cast into the air, landing on his back with a thud. I hadn’t even realized Aaron had changed into a dragon all ready. “How do you do that!” I called to him as the wind whipped my voice away, making it a whisper.“How do I do what?”“Change into a dragon so quickly? Isn’t it difficult?”“ It is more difficult for me to change into human form than it is my original form-think about it?” I suppose it would be just as difficult for a human to change into a dragon—the scales instead of hair, big pointy teeth, and razor sharp claws instead of finger nails. I could name a few people who probably wouldn’t have any difficulties with the claws, since they always seem to have them bared and ready to use. “Ha ha ha,” I was laughing so hard tears streamed down my cheeks—Aaron had to shift to balance me—I almost fell off Aaron’s back.“What’s so funny that you could have fallen to your doom?”“Claws!” I cried and laughed even harder.“Claws? What is so funny about claws?” As we landed in the alley behind my house, I tried to explain to him how some people seemed too always have their claws out. He did not understand until I used a few examples using some kids from school. “Oh, I get it!”I wasn’t sure he did, but I think he understood a little better before I told him goodbye and gave him a quick peck on the cheek – running into the house so I would not be late. “Kyra! I was worried about you. I tried to call you on the cell phone for the last hour and you did not answer. Well, young lady?” My dad stood in the kitchen with his feet firmly planted shoulder with apart; with his hands on his hips, and glared at me as if I had committed a cardinal sin. He only acted like this when I was seriously in trouble.“Hi Honey. Did you have a good time tonight?” Mom said as she walked in the kitchen and stood next to my dad. She must have heard him because before I could answer she asked for her cell phone back.“Here you go mom.” I said sheepishly as I unclipped the cell phone from my belt and handed it to her. She flipped her phone open, checking it, holding it up for my dad to see than whispered something in his ear as she mouth to him the words ‘sorry’. “I’m sorry Kyra. Your mom just informed me that she forgot to turn the ringer and vibrate on, before she gave it to you. Next time you use her cell phone-- please check that it is on.” I stood there in disbelief, how lucky I was at that moment. If the ringer or vibrate had been turned on I would have been grounded to my room for at least a week.“Kyra, I was just worried something happened to you. I love you.” I hadn’t run up to my dad in years and hugged him, tonight was an exception. “I love you too dad.” I said as I squeezed him as tightly as I could. He had been so busy much of my life I had almost forgotten how worried he got when I wasn’t safe at home. When I was in sixth grade, I went to my first sleep over at a friend’s house for her birthday. She lived a long way out in the country, on a farm. While I was getting my stuff ready to go to her sleepover, there was a breaking news report on the television about a recent bear attack in the area. My dad had been so worried that a bear might break into her house and maul me that he forbade me to go to the sleep over. It wasn’t until my mom’s reassurance that I would be safe-- that the news report said, “the attack was from a bear attacking campers in their tents- who did not secure their food properly- not their homes; did my dad finally lift my restriction on going to the party. As my mom and I walked out the door to drive there, he hugged me as if he was never going to see me again. I laughed when the next day my mom told me my dad had dreamed that he was fighting off bears all night, which made it impossible for her to get any sleep out of concern that he might mistake her for a bear. I dragged myself up the stairs to my room-- dead tired-- I guess all this flying around as a passenger is starting to wear me out. I still had the riddles to solve—tonight I did get some answers only to find more questions. “Goodnight Kyra,” my mom said softly as she pulled my quilt over me, kissing my forehead gently goodnight. “G--night mom.” I mumbled as I drifted off to sleep. It was still dark when I woke up; my heart pounding in my chest as I jumped to my feet—ready to protect myself from the threat I felt. I glanced defensively around my room, noticing nothing out of the ordinary. That was until I saw a blurred reddish brown –what looked to be a weird handprint on my glass outside my window. As my eyes adjusted to the dim light, I could see that the print was indeed of a hand—a hand just like Aarons in dragon form. “Aaron!” My mind screamed out his name. It was all I remembered as I woke to the sun shinning through my still scarred window, waking me up for a new day. Chapter 5 The Note “Nothing’ but a little late fall house cleaning,” I told my mom as she stood in my doorway watching me clean my window. The windows of our house tilt in for cleaning otherwise I would be frantic about how I was going to hide the bloody print sticky solidly to the middle of the glass. I could only wonder if Aaron was playing some sort of prank, was he injured somehow, or if one of the other dragons did this. “Kyra, I know I usually harp to you to clean your room. It’s forty degrees outside this morning and I do not think now is a good time to clean outside windows.” I knew she was right. It was getting chilly in my room from having my window tilted open but I was sure she would be freaked out if I had left it the way it was. I got dressed quickly, and ran downstairs to the kitchen. My mom was in her usual spot at the table – cup of coffee in hand—no dad in sight. “Where’s dad?” I asked her as I finished pouring a bowl of cereal for myself. She looked up from the book she had been reading, “Did you forget he had to go to work this morning as usual?” Now I did it! I made her mom radar go off by asking her something I should have known. Nervously I Sloshed the milk, I was trying to pour, over the count top “Oops! I’ll clean it up.” I said as I quickly grabbed a towel. “What is wrong with you today Kyra. First you’re up this morning cleaning your window than forgetting your dad has to work today- it’s not like you- what’s wrong?” I wanted to tell her about everything. Aaron and his friends being dragons, flying and about the bloody claw print—I was afraid. I was afraid if I did tell her and she believed me she would ground me forever or if she didn’t believe me I would feel betrayed- betrayed that she didn’t trust me enough not lie to her about something this serious. So-- I did the best thing I could do at the time. Shrugging my shoulders as I spooned mouthfuls of globules into my mouth I mumbled, “I don’t know.” A safe response that most children learn as soon as they can talk to defend themselves from things they do not want to answer. I felt guilty as I watched my mom silently get up to pour herself some more coffee. My mom like some adults never forgot what it was like being an adolescent; she knew exactly what I was doing. As I glance over to her empty seat I saw the book she had been reading, ‘Norse Mythology’, it was identical to the one I saw Aaron reading in school. “Mom! Where did you get that book?” Startled by the urgency in my voice she turned quickly, knocking her cup off the counter and onto the floor. “Calm down,” she said as she stooped to clean up the mess. “I found it in your backpack. I’m sorry if I upset you—I didn’t think you would mind.” “Oh, no mom, I don’t mind—I just forgot I had that book, that’s all.” I said as I shoved the book roughly into my backpack. I glanced cautiously at her to see if she believed me—she did. My stomach felt like it was churning as I realized—she believed me and this time I had lied to her. What was I doing? I never lied to my mom before—we had an honesty policy. Our ‘honesty policy’ was an agreement my mom and I created together when I was a little girl. It said that we were never to lie to one another unless it was extreme circumstances like the year dad planned a surprise party for my mom and I wasn’t supposed to tell her—because if I did, it would have wrecked the surprise. Otherwise, we were to be honest with each other. I didn’t really lie though-- I just used the word forgot rather than didn’t know-- Maybe I really did forget with all the things happening. Just maybe, Aaron gave me the book and I unconsciously put it in my backpack. Great! Now, I was lying to myself. “Oh this fell out of your book,” she said handing me a tattered folded piece of paper. “In case you’re wondering,” she continued, “I didn’t open it. I respect your privacy.” This morning was turning out to be one of those days when you wished you stayed safe in bed. Filled with guilt for the partial lie and now her declaration of how she respects my privacy I did the only thing I could do. I smiled an uttered a “Thanks mom,” stuffing the note in my back pocket as I leaned in and kissed her on the cheek before I grabbed my coat and out the door, walking quickly to the bus stop. Once at school, I scanned the hallways in between class, hoping to catch a glimpse of Aaron, Andrea or some recognition of any of the other dragons I saw in human form my first night at Barkers Island. Class after class went by without seeing any of them—I was hopeful, that at lunch Andrea would be there, for my mind was consumed by theories about the bloody hand/claw print. “That maybe it wasn’t blood at all but red clay. Aaron could have gotten it on his hands/claws before he put the book in my backpack when I was sleeping” or “it was just a prank one of the other dragons was pulling to scare me.” Though my theories were plausible—I could find loopholes in all of them—except two--, one that Aaron was hurt and the other that it was a prank. If only I could find Aaron or Andrea, they might know. Lunchtime came and I decided to buy my lunch. The line wasn’t very long—grabbing an apple, a salad, and a bottle of water—I proceeded to the cashier. She looked bored as she said, “$2.20” while she held out her hand for the money. I reached in my back pocket pulling out the cash I had stashed there when I noticed the note that had fallen out of the ‘Norse Mythology’ book this morning. Hanging on to my two one-dollar bills and fishing in my front pocket for the twenty cents- finding two dimes. I dropped the money into her hand, snatched up my tray, scanned for a seat where Andrea (if she was at school) could find me, and a little privacy to look at the tattered folded paper. I found the perfect table. It was close to the cafeteria doors—so that Andrea wouldn’t miss me—as well as the space was busy enough for now one to care about what I was doing. I opened the paper carefully; afraid if I hurried I would tear it, and spread the note out in front of me. I know I have seen symbols like this somewhere, but where; maybe in history class when we were studying ancient Egypt. “Hey, I heard their serving ‘wing dings’ today!” A student said loudly to his pal as they walked to the lunch line, disrupting my thoughts. All through lunch, I studied the note trying to decipher any of it, while automatically taking bite after bite out of my apple. The salad was forgotten.Br-i- ng….the bell rang out; time to move on to my next class. Disappointed, I jammed the note in my backpack, stuffed the leftover lunch in the trash, hopeful that Aaron would be in Biology to ease my fears and explain what was going on. In the hallway my head started throbbing, at first a dull pain just behind my ear, it steadily increase as I made my way to class. “Stress headache,” I muttered, trying to comfort myself as the pain in my head amplified. “Kyra.. Kyra…” I heard someone behind me whisper, I turned around towards the sound to see who said it, but all I saw were a sea of faces bobbing to their next class. I must be imagining it, I thought. Until I heard my name, being whispered again only this, time more urgent. “What!” I replied, frustrated as I abruptly spun around and smacked into Mr. Wilson my biology teacher, almost knocking him off his feet. He was so shocked he could only sputter and shake his head as I offered him a quick apology and scooted off to my next class hoping the time would go by quickly. As I sat in class waiting for it to be over; the thrum in my head worsened, I started to shiver from the pain. “Just a little bit longer,” I coaxed myself trying to hold out until biology. Than I would ask Mr. Wilson for a pass to go to the nurses office, but only after I talk to Aaron. “KYRA!” I heard someone scream, as I started trembling uncontrollably as an intense pain tore through my head. Blinding me as my body plummeted off my chair down to the cold tiled floor. I never heard the bell ring for biology. “Kyr.. ra..,” a ghostly voice whispered in the night; the moon lighting up everything around me in an ethereal blush; I saw waves undulating far below me, embracing the rocks that jutted maliciously out of the water, reaching for me, calling my name. I teetered on the edge of the precipice imploring my body not to reply. I could only watch, feeling the alarm rise up in me as my arms reached out to them. “Ky…ra” they called, “come to us..” I wobbled, resisting, as my feet stirred moving closer to the edge. Amongst the waves, sitting on the largest rock I could see a gloomy figure, battered and bloody looking up at me with big sad eyes. “Kyr.. Ra” it called up at me, “RUN!” The dark silhouette’s command shocked me out of my stupor. Regaining control over my body and mind, I spun around and ran howling “Noooo…!” as I realize the broken figure on the rocks, had been Aaron in his dragon form. I found myself running through the wood, branches slashing, grabbing at me trying to stop my plight. When I could run no more, I tumbled to the ground and sobbed. I wept for Aaron, wondering if he was still alive or if the crashing tide washed him away. I cried for myself, lost, afraid, and confused. Wondering how I got to the cliff when my last memory was of me sitting safe in my class at school, waiting for the bell to ring, for my next class was biology. The only class I had Aaron in; who might hold the answers that I needed. A shadow flickered across the ground. Looking up I saw a large dark shape looming just above the trees, directly over my head. I crouched lower, burying my head in my arms, trying to shield myself from its view. “Kyr.. ra,” it sang to me, it words vibrating through my mind, “don’t be afraid.” I heard the rustling of branches as it made its decent. I looked up, startled to see Andrea, my friend, looming over me. She was more beautiful than I remember, as the moonlight shimmered in waves off her dark lavender scales. I tried to find the words to tell her about Aaron, to ask her what was happening, as she gently picked me up and placed me on her back. “Hang on,” she called, her voice soft as a lullaby “I’m here to bring you home.” Oh I almost forgot it is young adult fiction Over the last three months I have had no feedback on it- I am up to 30,000 words and another probally 30,000 until it is completely finished. This is not my first attemp at a novel, the others I tried to force from short stories I had written into novels- this became a novel from the beginning. Its taken me 20 years to start writing again..... I need honesty - critique - for a publisher is not out there just to be nice to everyone. exert first chapter- to help clarify.... My world is falling apart. The world I thought I knew. The world where I felt apart of instead of the outcast I feel like now. How did this happen? I kept asking myself. How am I so different from my peers? My wants, needs, desires... My reactions to them over stepping my boundaries- the boundaries of humanity, while they talk to me and treat me anyway they please. Expecting me to roll over and play dead or abide to their wishes as if I am some genie in a lamp. Cutting me off with anger when I do not abide or struggle to tell them no. Why do I have to be like them? Why do I have to be like everyone else? As if, I was to be supposed to be created in their image instead of my Gods. Doesn’t it say we are supposed to turn the other cheek to find understanding of one another, compassion, acceptance…?
if you were (Titanic )Captain Edward smith what would you have doneto prevent this tragedy of the Titanic ? The history of the Titanic began at a dinner party in a London mansion in 1907. Then, J. Bruce Ismay, managing officer of the White Star Line, a prominent ship operating company, and Lord James Pirrie devised plans to build three magnificent ships that would set a new standard for luxury and elegance. The first two would be named Olympic and Titanic while the third, to be built later, would be the Britannic. The White Star Line started production on the Olympic in December of 1908, while work on the Titanic started the following March. The Titanic included amenities that many of its passengers had never enjoyed in their own homes, such as electric light and heat in every room. The size and splendor of the Titanic quickly established the ship as a legend, even before the first voyage. The Titanic was officially launched from Southampton, England, on April 10, 1912. While the ship carried more than 2,200 passengers and crew, Titanic was equipped with only 16 lifeboats, with a capacity of 1,708. The White Star Line had decided to use only half the number of boats the Titanic could carry in order to alleviate what was referred to as a "cluttered" feeling on the main deck of the ship. The Titanic sailed first to Cherbourg, France, to pick up additional passengers, and then to Queenstown, Ireland, before setting out to sea for the transatlantic voyage to New York. The first three days of the voyage passed without incident, while the fourth did not. Although the Titanic had received five ice warnings throughout the day on April 14, Captain Edward Smith decided not to slow down and continued on at 21 knots (25 mph). At 11:40 PM, lookout Fred Fleet spotted an iceberg and notified the bridge. First Officer William Murdoch then ordered the ship turned hard to port and the engine room was signaled to reverse direction. The ship did move slightly, but could not avoid the iceberg, which tore a 300 feet-long hole in the ship, causing compartments to begin filling with water. Twenty-five minutes after the crash, the ships officers ordered the lifeboats uncovered and began preparing the passengers and crew for evacuation. The first lifeboat was launched twenty minutes after the orders were given. Despite having a carrying capacity of 68, the first lifeboat launched with only 28 passengers. When the last boat launched, there were more than 1,500 passengers left on board. The lifeboats contained mostly women and children. However, J. Bruce Ismay managed to escape by sneaking onto one of the last lifeboats. At approximately 2:10 AM, the stern, or rear of the ship, rose out of the water and shortly thereafter the weight of the raised stern caused the ship to split in two. The bow, or front of the ship, slowly sunk as the stern settled back into the water. Then, the stern filled with water until it disappeared into the ocean. More than 1,500 souls were lost in the "greatest maritime disaster in history". Many attempts have been made to find the wreck of the Titanic, yet it wasn't until 1985, when an expedition combining teams from IFREMER and Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute discovered the famous ship. The team, led by Robert Ballard and Jean-Luis Martin, took the first photographs of the Titanic in 73 years. More than 90 years later, people continue to be fascinated with the Titanic. The disaster and its survivors have been the subject of four movies, a Broadway musical and countless books. The movie Titanic, written and directed by James Cameron, is the most expensive film ever made and in 1998 it won 11 Academy Awards. The Titanic recently made headlines again in 2001, when a New York couple announced they would be wed in a deep-sea submersible at the Titanic gravesite.
Is this a good horror story? Into the Swamp The muddy, thick water was still below the rotted trees, the top of which seemed to block out the night sky. Haunting sounds rang through the darkness of the swamp, as the fog swept over the dreary land, setting an uncomforting mood. The ground was almost pure mud, mold covered the majority of it. A certain sick feel lived inside the swamp, which had no name. No human lived within 10 miles of it, and hardly anyone ever went in, for there was no purpose. Few animals lived in the area near regular land. Riley Black stumbled into this setting clutching a shotgun in his right hand and his injured right shoulder in his left hand. On his back was a carry on bag filled with $500,000, shotgun shells, and a flashlight. He limped, feeling as if he was too dizzy to continue, and he was going to collapse. A couple dozen yards in, he reached a dreary, cold body of water, and on the muddy banks of which sat an old, wooden ferry boat. It looked as if it wasn't able to stay afloat in the water. It creaked in an uncomfortable manner as Black put his left foot in. He sat down slowly, grabbed the oar, and set off. The wood on the boat, much like the trees in the swamp, was dead and rotted. He could barely see through the fog, but none the less, the oar continued to make it's way slowly through the muggy waters. He glanced up at the the tree tops as the boat skimmed through the water. Crows soared furiously through the foggy air, screaming at one another. His concentration was broken by a small tug on the oar. He looked down at the water. Moments passed. Nothing. Just as he started to continue, a figure leaped out of the water and clutched to the side of the ferry boat. Black looked over at what was trying to climb on to the boat. His body went still as he stared into the face of a decomposed, human-like creature. It's face was rotted away and boney, with green, dead skin. It's teeth were clearly visible through it's almost absent mouth. It's right eye was popped out more so than the left, and it's nose was just dead skin that wrapped tighly around the nose bone. It had a small amount of grey hair atop it's head. It made it's way onto the boat, revealing a skeleton like figure bundled up in old clothes much like a bum would wear. It gave a loud, horrifying, high-pitched shriek as it lunged toward Black. He snapped out of his trance and quickly grabbed the shotgun. He aimed and fired, hitting it right between the eyes. The creature fell off the boat and sank back into the water. He put the gun down and stared at the spot the monster had just stood. Sweat dripped down his face, and he breathed uncontrollably. "I heard a gunshot over there!" said a voice from the entrance of the swamp. "Aw Christ. How'd they track me?" he thought. He picked up the oar and paddled as fast as he could. Within minutes, he reached the opposite bank. He hopped out of the boat and into the mud, which was about four inches deep. Gathering his stuff together, he looked around , thinking about his direction. He walked a a bit aways further. "You lost?" said a woman's voice. Black turned to see a smiling old woman in a sundress and hat. Both the items she was wearing were covered in a flower covered pattern, which definately didn't match the place she wasin. Black's temper quickly came into play, for he was greatly impatient at the moment, but before he could say anything, she interuptted him. "The cabin your lookin' for is just o'er that direction" said the woman pointing, then she turned and walked down a muddy path. Black turned to see an old cabin. "That was not there before. Who ar-". She was gone. "That's impossible!", He thought, frantically looking around the path she had traveled. He stood there for a moment before shaking it off and heading towards the cabin. * * * Earlier that day, in the City Diner in a small town in Louisiana, Jackie Randle sat waiting and enjoying his burger. Randle was a tall, pale guy with a ragged look to him. His old, paint covered Pantera shirt and ripped jeans didn't say much about him. He finished his food and leaned back. "I hope this guy Hanley's bringin' is good. He obviously sucks at arrivin' on time, I don't think he's that responsable to pull somethin' off like this." he thought. Just then, a man in jeans and a plad shirt walked in to the quiet lttle diner. He was a regular sized guy, handsome face and combed back hair. He looked like a dirty man. one who cared little about hygene. It looked like he wasn't sure about what he was doing. He had certain nervousness about him. Randle looked up, "Guess you're the guy I'm lookin' for?". The man show a toothy grin said,"I guess so. You Jackie Randle?". Randle nodded and stuck his hand out. The man shook his hand pleasently and sat at the opposite seat in the booth. "You gonna order anything? You Hungry?", asked Randle. Almost insantly the man replied, "No. I'm just here to get the plan together. Nothing else." Randle hesitated before nodding. "Where's Hanley?" asked the man, who for some reason seemed to be getting impatient. "He'll meet us there," They sat there for an hour going over notes. Randle said, starting to wrap it up," So let's go over the plan, Hanley'll walk into the bank, gun in pocket, and sit in the waiting area. You'll walk in and go up to the tellar farthest from the front door. That's when I walk in and and immediatly take out the security gaurds. You stick up that tellar there and tell 'em to open the vault. Hanley'll come into play if anyone trys to get near us, in which he'll pick off the gaurd or whoever's tryin' to be a hero. We'll improvise after we get out of there, but Hanley's bringing his car and he's got an old cabin out in a swamp about a half an hour from here. You got it?" The man nodded and asked "We're supposed to be there in twenty minutes. I got the guns in my trunk and we can walk from here, it's only three blocks." Randle gave a thumbs up. "Man, this guy's weird, but he seems to know what he's doing. I'm not gonna question Hanley. This guy- wait what's his name?" He thought. "Excuse me, uh, guy?" Randle said catching up with him,"What's you're name? We've been talking for like an hour and I still don't know". The sharply dressed man hesitated, then looked up ,"Black. Riley Black." * * * The fog seemed to grow thicker, and Black knew it was only a matter of time before those cops found him. He immediatly went to the corner of the two story cabin's first floor and sat down. He sat down and pulled out a pocket knife. He took a long breath before sinking it into the hole in his right shoulder. He let out a silent scream as blood seeped out and down his arm, and within ten seconds, the bloody bullet fell to the filthy cabin floor. He then cut off part of his shirt and wrapped it around the already festering wound. He checked the bag to make sure the goods were still there and he quickly yanked up the shotgun and went up the stairs. There were four empty bedrooms upstairs, all of which had the same feel as the swamp. The cabin was hundreds of years old and hadn't been inhabited for about fifty years. He stood at the broken window and waited for about ten minutes before the two cops found the cabin. One stayed outside and and the other quietly went in. Black squinted and pointed the end of the shotgun out the window and and picked the cop off. The bullet went into his heart. Black quickly turned to the bedroom door and waited for cop two to come rollin' through the door. Since he had shot the other cop, cop two was surely on his way. As soon as he came through the door, he was on the ground and bleeding from the neck. Black walked over to the dying man and looked down at him. He raised the gun, aimed, looked away, and fired. Blood was now all over the walls of the little bedroom. Black wiped the blood off his face and sat in the far corner of the room near a closet. The closet was locked and Black was a little too shooken up to go looking around in the old house. Darkness wasn't far off, the fog was still holding strong. He began to get dizzy, his head started to wobble. He passed out right there in the corner. "Wake up!" Black heard the voice of Hanley. He blinked a few times before looking across the room. There stood Randle and Hanley. They had a lantern with them and two guns, and that was about it. "What's wrong with you?", yelled Hanley,"Killing the cops and not disposing of the bodies or their boat! You and Randle go fix it, now!" Black stood up, anger boiling inside of him,"Why in God's name would you ever choose this swamp? I had a zombie-thing leap outta the water like Jason, I saw a ghost woman just walkin' around in the swamp, I- I'm freakin' out here!" Hanley, looking annoyed, said "You're just a little worked up. Now do what I said." Black moved towards the dooor and turned around. "Watch him!" said Black and he walked out of the room. Hanley looked greatly confused. Randle and Black walked down the stairs. Black noticed that they had hung lanterns up in nearly ever room of the cabin, including the backdoor where the cop came through. They walked out that same backdoor and stopped. "Black, I'll go do somethin' with the boat, you go do somethin' with Robocop over near the tree." He watched Randle walk into the black with his lantern. He fished for his flashlight in his front pocket and proceeded out of the lantern's light. He walked over to the cop's body, but stop after almost stepping on a dead rabbit. He looked down and studied it. It's flesh was half gone and it was missing a back leg. He got a bit closer and squinted. The rabbit's body twitched! He jumped slightly back, but then felt kinda stupid. Just then, the rabbit began to twitch violently, then it stopped. It rose up on it's three remaining legs. Black backed up and followed the rabbit with the light, and he watched as it hopped over to the cop's body. It paused for a moment before looking at Black and then grabbing the cop's collar by the mouth and somehow dragging it far off into the woods. Black stood there in absolute shock. The moment was then broken by Randle's screaming. Black quickly ran over to the water bank to see all three boats and Randle sinking rapidly in the mud. Black lunged forward to grab his hand, but was stopped as the mud began to move, as if something was crawling through it. Suddenly, a figure of mud began to form from the ground up. It stood, pure mud, about ten feet tall. It had no facial features, it was just a basic human-like shape. It looked up at the moon and a mouth began to open up, letting out a peircing howl. Black shot at the mud monster, but the bullets did nothing but get lost in the figure. It looked down and let it's body fall on Randle and the boats, all of them disappearing, drowning in the deep, deep mud. Then, the muddy waterside returned to how it was before any soul had touched. It regained it's normal shape. The swamp grew silent. The fog stopped dead in the air. Black stood in one spot, trying to collect his thoughts. He looked up at the spot where Randle met his demise. His eyes grew wide at what was now happening. He screamed as the water began to move, as figures arose. Creatures, much like the one Black dealt with on the ferry boat, limped out of the water. The creatures caught site of Black and headed in his direction. They all very much resembled his ferry boat friend. Rotted flesh, bolging eyes, skeleton figures. Moaning. Dazed. They were zombies. He turned and ran toward the cabin as fast as he could manage to move. He began to slow down when he heard the voice of a woman singing. A dreary, beautiful voice filling the air. He couldn't make out the words. He looked over to the area of the sound, where he saw the woman in the sundress slowly walking and singing. She stopped and turned to him. His spine began to shake and the hair on his body stood up. She smiled for a moment, before her now transparent body began to quiver and fall to the ground. Her flesh began to fpeel away from her bones, leaving a skeleton in a sundress lying in am pile flesh. Then within a split second, it disappeared. He hesitated and continued towards the cabin. "Hanley we gotta get outta here now!" He said running up the stairs. He ran into the room, but was stopped at the sight of the the corpse of the cop feeding off of Hanley. "Man, Hanley, I told you to watch him." He said raising the shotgun. The corpse looked up at him. It had not yet rotted like the other zombies, but it still had those menacing bolging eyes. It hissed at him, right before taking a bullet to the forehead. He walked over to Hanley's body and put a bullet in it's head before it could change into one of those things. He peered out the window. The zombies stumbled toward the back door and into the cabin. He decided to wait out night and swim, seeing as how all three boats were under water. He'd sit in his corner of the room and pick off whatever came through that door. He had enough ammo to take down hundreds of them, and he had all the time in the world. * * * The 1978 corvette flew down the road. So fast the cop cruisers barely kept up. Randle sat in the passenger seat, turning around after every reload to shoot at the cop cars through the shattered back window. Black sat in the back doing the same while Hanley drove. "Where's the swamp?" Black asked reaching for more ammo. "Well, I didn't think they'd keep up like this, so one of you two has to get the loot and tuck and roll at the next sharp turn. The swamp entrance is marked by a tree with a red spray painted X. Get in the swamp, there's two ferry boats. Take one across the water, cause that only way to get to and back from the otherside, and get to the cabin. It's about a ten minute walk from the opposite bank." Hanley said quickly. Black sighed "I'll do i-" but was interupted when a bullet hit him in the shoulder. He grabbed his arm and fell below the window. "They got me! They got me bad!". He looked down at his arm, which was pouring blood everywhere. He moaned in pain looked up a the ceiling of the car. "Can you still do this?" asked Hanley. "Yeah, yeah, just give me a second!" he cried still looking at the ceiling. "We don't have a second! We're turning now!" yelled Hanley. "Ok!" Black responded as he struggled up to the broken back window. Randle tossed him the bag with the money and Black grabbed his gun. They turned in an area where trees blocked the cops view of them, and vice versa. "It's now or never" he thought, and he lept from the back of the car, rolling into a ditch on the side of the road. * * * Riley Black sat in the corner of the abandoned swamp cabin, picking off every zombie that poked it's head through the door. His eyes were bloodshot, his hair was a mess, and he'd sat in that corner for the past few hours, just shooting. The amount of them calmed down, eventually, there were none coming through the bedroom doorway. He sat for a minute before rising and walking to the window. Daylight was soon coming. He walked to the doorway and looked down the steps. Nothing. He walked outside. Nothing was there. It was if everything had stopped. He walked over to the side of the water. "You're gonna die in here, Riley, but it's you're only chance." he muttured to himself. He put the shotgun in the bag, trigger out, and slung it on his back. He took the longest breath he ever took and dived in the water. It was about a ten minute boat ride, so he knew he;d be swimming for awhile. He swam for ten minutes without any truoble. The sudden hault of all these horrid events worried him, but this peace didn't last for long. In an instant, the sky melted into pitch black, and with the already hard to see through fog, he felt lost within the middle of the water. He stopped and doggy paddled to keep afloat. He looked around frantically in the dark, until his eyes stopped upon a light in the fog. He waited for a moment, as an empty ferry baot with a lantern on the pole float towards him. "This is the swamp playin' tricks on me." He thought "But once again, no choice at all." He pulled himself up on the boat and looked around. Nothing strange. He grabbed the oar and paddled faster than he'd ever paddled before. He came within sight of the bank he first entered the water on. He remained very alert, looking around at everything in his path. He reached land, grabbed the lantern, and quickly fled throughthe swamp. "This is way to easy of an escape." he thought in fear. He reached the entrance of the swamp and for the first time in about twelve hours, he smiled. He was yards from freedom of the horrific events that took place here. Suddenly, his foot was caught on something. He quickly glanced down to see a hand breaking through the Earth and clutching tightly to his ankle. He tried to shake free but the grip was too strong. He reached for the shotgun in his bag, but he had no ammo left. He paniced. He looked around as zombies began to pour onto the path. They edged closer. He fell backwards onto the ground. Three of them pin him down, while one of them opened it's decayed mouth. "The swamp loves to play tricks on me," he thought, "it put me so close to freedom, and just took it away with whatever evil has resided in this place. Sick, twisted games these waters play.". This was the final thought of Riley black before the creatures that pinned him down began to drag his feasted corpse back into the darkness. Back into the waters. Back into the swamp. Yep thanks
funny word meanings..? Abundance - A baker's exercise (A-bun-dance) Arbitrator - A cook that leaves Arby's to work at McDonald's. Arcade - A lemonade type drink served on Noah's Ark. Avoidable - What a bullfighter tries to do. Babysitter - A small child that has not learned to crawl or walk. Baloney - Where some hemlines fall. Band-Aid - A fund to help a band. Bernadette - The act of torching a mortgage. Burglarize - What a crook sees with. Cadillac - Lack of cattle. Contents - Where con men sleep while on a camping trip. Control - A short, ugly inmate. Cookout - The cook's day off. Counterfeiters - Workers who put together kitchen cabinets. Cowlick - Bashing a cow. Cowhide - Game of Hide and Seek played by cows. Detail - Removing a tail. Dieting - The penalty for exceeding the feed limit. Dog Paddle - A rolled-up newspaper with which to punish a dog without hurting it. Doughnut - Holey food. Eclipse - What a Cockney barber does for a living. Eyedropper - A clumsy ophthalmologist. Fan Club - A weapon used by a celebrity so he won't be crushed by fans. Feather Brained - Fuzzy headed. Feather Head - An American Indian Chief. Fire Escape - A way for a fire to go out. First Lady - Eve. Flying Saucers - The wife is on a rampage. Funny Paper - (1) A paper that laughs. (2) The paper you read instead of going to church. Ghost Town - A town full of Haunted Houses. Girl Scout - A boy that "scouts" for girls. Good-bye - A bargain. Gossip - 24-hour teller. Handicap - A head cover that is easy to locate and wear. Hardship - A ship protected by thick cover. Hatchet - What a hen does to an egg. Hay - Grass a-la-mowed. Headlight - A dizzy spell. Heavy Duty - Loading an elephant. Hence - An enclosure around a hen yard. Heroes - What a guy in a boat does. High school - A school atop the Sears Building. High water - The main reason Noah built the ark. Himalaya - A rooster that lays an egg. Holy Smoke - A church on fire. House Keeper - A lady that kicks her husband out and keeps the house. Ideal Person - A card player that wants to deal everytime. Illegal - A sick bird. Installment - Putting a horse in a stall. Lad - A short ladder. Laughing Stock - Cattle, horses, sheep and hogs responding to a good joke. Layaway Plan - A pre-arranged burial plan. Laying Down The Law - Putting the law aside and making your own rules. Left Bank - What the robber did when his bag was full of loot. Life Jacket - A special coat that lasts a lifetime. Lip Service - Applying lipstick. Little Dipper - A small boy diving. Long Jump - When the cow jumped over the moon. Matchbook - A book about matches. Megaphone - A very large telephone. Mistletoe - Any animal with a toe missing. Misty - How golfers create divots. Mohair - What bald headed men need. Monkey Business - A petstore employing monkeys only. Moron - Someone that spent all night studying for a blood test. Moth Ball - A special social event for moths. Negative Feedback - One result of seasickness. Network - The process of making nets. Outfit - Pitching a fit outdoors. Over Leap - When the cow jumped over the moon. Overloaded - An elephant riding a bicycle. Oyster Bed - A place for an oyster to sleep. Pacifist - One that can't advocate peace without clinching his fist. Paradox - Two physicians. Parasites - What you see from the top of the EiffelTower. Pedestrian - An endagered species. Period - A comma that curled up and went to sleep. Pharmacist - A helper on the farm. Piggyback - A lost pig is back home. Pigment - A mint plant grown to feed hogs. Pineapple - An apple that grew on a pine tree. Polarize - What penguins see with. Pole Vault - A vault where poles hid from Hitler. Polite - A light on a pole. Polygon - A parrot that got away. Priesthood - A special headpiece for a priest. Primate - Removing your spouse from in front of the TV. Protest - Testing a professional person. Put-down - To hot to handle. Quarterback - Change when you pay for a 75¢ item with a dollar bill. Reform - To gain or lose weight. Refuse - Replacing a burned out fuse. Relief - What trees do in the spring. Remind - A brain transplant. Rest Stop - The traffic light is stuck on red. Retire - Replacement of tires. Ringworm - Worm with a bell. Rock Music - A lullaby sung in a rocking chair. Roman - A person that never settles very long in one place. Sausage - "Groundog". Scorekeeper - Someone that knows the score but keeps it to himself. Showoff - The show has been cancelled. Selfish - What the owner of a seafood store does. Single Entry - Single people only. Standing Order - Freeze! Subdued - Like, a guy who, like, works on one of those, like, submarines, man. Sudafed - Brought litigation against a government official. Sunny - A bright boy. Sunbeam - A heat proof beam supporting the sun. Sunburn - What you basked for. Sundial - An old-timer. Sweater - A person that freely perspires. Syntax - All the money collected at the church from sinners. Teenagers - People who are doing the things you wish we had thought of when we were younger. Time Keeper - A guy that didn't return your watch. Tireless - Have a car but have no tires. Tooth Picks - The choices many dentists give patients to select their artificial teeth. Touch-Me-Not - A person with a severe sunburn. Travelers Aid - A soft drink for tourists. Vitamin - What you do when someone comes to the house. Waffle Iron - A special additive to put more iron in waffles. Waterfall - A "watered-down" place in a stream. Well Done - A water, gas or oil well is completed. Weekend - A book with a blah ending. Whether - Unpredictable weather. Wildlife - Living it up! Witchcraft - Handmade crafts made for Halloween. Woodchuck - Throwing a heavy pole, post or other item made of wood. Workout - An outside job. Writer - One who corrects a wrong. Year Book - A book that takes a year to read. Zero Hour - Time kept by a "cuckoo" clock.
has anyone cut a scarf of 48 inches with a circular saw? I have made smaller scarfs, of 10 to 18 inches, all cut by hand, but has anyone had experience cutting a scarf joint of 42-48 inches by hand with a circular saw. If so, did you find the wobble of the blade to create large voids in your stock. Although this will not be used in a boat, i am going to be using thinned epoxy to set it up and thickened when I put the members together. I plan to let the set fully cure before applying the thickened. I will probably used acetone to denude the wood prior to the first epoxy for maximum penetration. any experience would be appreciated, i'm building to nautical engineering standards on this project.
My family of 4 kids (grown), 2 in-laws, 3 grandkids are taking lake trip and I need fun, bonding activities? My kids are 27, married w/ 2 boys, 26, married w/ new baby, 20 and 18. There seems to be some recent distance between some of them and I would like to plan some activities for us to do on our vacation. We are going to a lake house for 4 days. In addition to boating and normal lake activities, I'd like to have a few other things planned that will encourage bonding. They aren't very adventurous so I will have to "sell" them on whatever I plan but "sell" them I will. I was thinking about a family totem pole and have each person/family paint some sort of wood blocks or something and my husband can put them on a pole and we can use it as decoration in our back yard. I really need any and all other suggestions please.
i need to build a raft? hey i need raft plans that WILL WORK. rafts that can be built from old tires i found in the woods some spare wood and a couple small ropes. i really need to keep dry because we raft for a day then slee for 2 days then raft again. and we only have the clothes on my back so no wet. (does the boat go in the wahty?
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