This wasn't one of those super fun weekends. This was a work weekend. Step one: Change the skid plates on the UTV from the plastic ones to the metal ones. No, I didn't finish the job...yet. The instructions anger me. I started with the front piece. The instructions told me to remove the bumper (not normal hardware so stupid little Torx wrench things are needed). What it failed to mention was that you don't need to REMOVE the bumper, just the four bolts in the front so you can slide the plate up and re-attach. Yes. I'm fully aware that had I mocked it up rather than reading the instructions, I wouldn't have done all the extra work. Maybe the men that refuse to read directions aren't so crazy after all.

I couldn't do this entire project myself. In fact, most of it was a fail for me. The instructions specifically said not to use a pneumatic riveter, so I had brought up the hand riveter. Anyone building a car needs to get a pneumatic one. If I didn't already know this before, it became abundantly clear very quickly. I don't know what words to use so I'll do my best to describe. You take a rivet stem that has an odd threaded end and put a sleeve looking thing that accepts the thread on it and put a washer on that. The directions are vague and show a picture with the threads sticking way out. In fact, you thread it all the way in. So then apparently you stick the rivet stem in the riveter and squeeze a few times without breaking the stem, but somehow magically causing the sleeve thing to stick in the hole. Then you manage to somehow remove the rivet stem from the rivet tool and the washer falls on the ground and then you can unscrew the threaded rivet and it leaves you with a stem, a lost washer which is now somewhere in the dirt and a hole filled with some odd adapter/sleeve thing. Do this four times. Once again I have to admit Mike is a genius since he figured all this out and managed to actually do it.

So then it was my turn to put the A-arm protectors on. First of all, the directions made it look like the left was the right and vice versa. Maybe the directions are fine and I'm reversed. That's entirely possible - probable even. Step 1: Drill out the rivets. Strangest looking rivets I've seen, but okay. I tried. Didn't work. I whined and Dan changed my bit to a larger one. All better. Well, except I was laying in rocky dirt that was really uncomfortable and it was super hot in the bright sun and the drill was too heavy to hold for long periods of time over my head and the new bit was long so I ended up having to dig into the dirt so the drill could fit between the earth and the rivet. I survived and I conquered. Step 2: Put clamps on the A-arms. Okay, so the picture isn't very clear, but I spun it this way and that, threw it on the ground, growled and shoved the clamps on the way I (me, me, me) thought they should go. Wrong. Change. Wrong. Change. Wrong. Change. Do this until you give up and try smashing the metal protector on (mocking up). Sigh. I was right the first time. Step 3: Somehow figure out how to grow an extra hand so you can hold the heavy metal piece above your head while sticking a bolt through the plate hole and both portions of the clamp (which won't stay close enough together to get the bolt through) and then stick a nut on the entire tower of awesomeness. Yeah, impossible. I got help. While Mike was there, I suggested he do the riveting. I've never seen him make faces like he made while trying to break off the 3/16 stem. I was seriously afraid his face would explode. He turned all read and vein-y and he was twisting and thrashing. He probably wasn't amused when I yelled 1 down 5 to go.

Sunday was more of a work on the cabin day. Mike decided it was time to lower the cabin some and take out those I-beams. He did that Saturday while I was slaving away under the UTV. It looked great except for the gaping holes. I could've gotten used to the holes, but no. Mike and Dan decided we needed to put brick down. This involved heavy lifting, mortar and cement. Not my favorite things. We succeeded and once again affirmed we should not be masons. As far as I can tell, everything is still standing. Now there is only one gap. Oh, but before we did the blocks, we had to get the forms out and insulate the pipes. Yup, that meant Julie and Steve were skished up under the cabin. Claustrophobia, here I come. The last form refused to budge and I bet Dan (an apple pie) that he couldn't get it out. In a blink of an eye, the form was laying on the ground outside of the cabin innards. Sigh. I guess I need to bake a pie this week. I also need to bake a cake since Steve's birthday is Wednesday.

Next weekend we are supposed to completely lower the cabin. It's down quite a bit already. I'm anxious to see if our new little block wall (Dan called it a stub wall which made me giggle - stub is a cute word) can hold up under the full weight of the cabin.