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Post by udwe on Nov 12, 2021 19:28:51 GMT -6
Getting better all the time! Love it!
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Post by ncsfsgm on Nov 13, 2021 6:38:00 GMT -6
Chapter 71
Gil took Brad up to the Chamber the next morning after breakfast. Brad saw the wooden door but it took him a second to recognize the outlines for what they were. His interest mounted when Gil opened the blast door though. When Gil turned on the lights, Brad was impressed. "You've done a lot of work here." Brad said.
"Yeah, and I've got a lot more. I'm going to double-stack the rooms like I have this one over here. I figure I can add 8 more rooms. That's as much as I want to use. The rest needs to go into storage."
"What about that other chamber?"
"Well, that has a stream running it. I'm afraid anything stored in there will collect moisture."
"Store stuff in plastic barrels, throw some desiccant packs in there. They'll be fine."
"Good Idea. I'll look into that."
"This is a nice setup."
"Let's get the big dump trailer hooked up and run down to Greeneville. I want to pick up another Gator at Meade Tractor. You're going to need something to tool around here in."
"How far do the sensors run back in the woods?"
"Take a look at the controller in the mount on the Gator. I'll get one set up on your Gator so you can turn them on and off as needed."
Gil stopped by the house and told Grace where they were going as they headed out.
As Gil and Brad were driving away Mollie glanced first at Allie, then said to Grace, "Looks like Brad might be staying around. Can't see Gil having two of them things otherwise."
Once they got the Gator loaded, Gil took a detour across town to Knight Distributing, Jimmy's office. Gil knocked on the door jamb and Jimmy smiled when he looked up and saw both Gil and Brad.
"Damn! You're looking good Brother!" Jimmy said, hugging Brad. "What are you two doing down here?"
"We were down at Mead Tractor picking up a Gator UTV and thought we'd stop by."
"I'm glad you did. You gettin' settled in Brad?"
"Yep. Gil's got a real nice place up there."
"We still on for Saturday morning?" Jimmy asked.
"Yep. We'll have more time to talk. We've got to be getting back."
"Okay. Glad you could stop by. I look forward Saturday, guys."
Jimmy walked with them outside and watched as they drove away.
"You wouldn't have a surveyor's transit or better yet, a construction theodolite and prism poles would you?"
"There is a theodolite in container 3."
Brad grinned. "A-l-l-l-l right!"
"What are you doing?" Gil asked.
"I'm laying you out a 200 meter range, 25 meters wide, with firing points at 7, 15, 25, 50, 100, 150, and 200 meters."
"And where have you decided to put it?" Gil asked.
"Jump in!" Brad said, getting into the Gator.
Brad drove them to the other side of the garden in an area between the woodline and the old pond. The range would extend from the slope of the ridge all the way to the farm road that went to the old homestead.
"Are you planning to grow hay here next year?" Brad asked.
"No, not really. What I was really thinking was taking up flying again." Gil said.
"Really?" I've thought about it too, but you've only got about 1500 feet with some clearance concerns."
"I was thinking more in the line of a STOL aircraft, not a 172."
"Oh yeah! I saw some up in Durango one time at a fly-in. That would be fun!"
"Tonight, look up 'SuperSTOL' on YouTube. I swear, I'm ready to go down to Brasstown right now."
"Well, pack a bag!" Brad said.
"As much as I'd like to, that wouldn't be realistic. It takes a few weeks to put one together. What we could do though, is go talk to them, pick out what we wanted and order them. It would be a long day trip, but we could do it and while they were building them, we can get other things done around here."
"Would you want to build a hangar?"
Why not? Nothing fancy, just big enough for two of the STOLs, maybe a fuel tank. One of those metal hangars would be all right, and wouldn't take long to put up."
"Well, right now, I'm going to work on this range I promised you. When do you want to start working on the other sleeping areas in the Chamber?"
"I need to go over my revised notes and plans and put together a materials list. I'll have everything delivered, but we'll have to carry everything up the ridge. With two Gators and two trailers, we could, in a couple or three trips, take enough stuff up to build one room. Building them all the same way will speed up construction. Right now, I've got to go and finalize Billy's adoption. I'll see you later.
The signing of the paperwork was seemingly anticlimactic, but there were a lot of emotions. They, as a family, walked down the courthouse steps, arm in arm and went to get an early lunch.
Gil went to his office that afternoon and started reviewing previous materials lists and drawings and redrew the plans for the rest of the sleeping quarters. He looked at the furnishings list for the previous lists and came up with a revised one. He was going to need 8 Captain's beds and decided to have that young guy over in Persia build them for him. Maybe, some nightstands too. Plow some of the money back into the local economy.
Once Gil had his plans in order, he printed out the materials list and headed to the building supply store. All the nails, screws, wire, switches hinges and such, Gil brought back with him. The rest was on scheduled delivery. He also picked up another nail gun and compressor unit. If they had Billy cutting and Gil and Brad nailing, they could have a wall up in minutes.
Billy had finished his modules and went down with Gil to see how Brad was doing. He had stakes driven into the ground with different markings and was writing in a notebook when Gil and Billy pulled up.
"How's it going?
"Getting there. I need to get some ¾ and 3/8 limestone gravel hauled and get it packed down good after I do some grading. Do you know where I can rent a compactor?"
"I think I can come up with a mid-size one. I'll give you a number to call to get the gravel you want delivered."
"Good. Well, I'm going to get the dirt box on the tractor and get to work moving some dirt."
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Post by ncsfsgm on Nov 13, 2021 6:39:09 GMT -6
Chapter 72
Gil was on the computer ordering the L.E.D. lights for the rooms when the FEDEX lady arrived. Gil signed for the packages and smiled. It was the Air Rifles. He put the boxes away for now, and completed his light order. Picking up his old laptop, Gil went up to the Chamber. He had installed a program on the computer to monitor energy usage so he could determine whether to extend the battery bank or not. He picked today because it was overcast and the PV panels wouldn't be charging the battery bank efficiently. He opened the program and turned on everything that used electricity. Letting the program run for 24 hours would give him an idea of whether to do some adjustments to his power system. Gil locked everything up and went and loaded his tree cutting gear into the back of the Gator. He had about two weeks before the sap started rising in the trees with the coming Spring and he wanted to get the trees on the ground. Turning off the sensor zone he wanted to begin working first, he cut down ten oak and hickory trees and without trimming them up, let them lay. Leaving the zone, he turned it back on and went to the adjacent zone. Carefully selecting the trees here also so as not to disturb the sensors, he cut another fifteen trees and loaded his equipment up. After leaving the zone and turning the sensors back on, Gil headed back to the house for lunch.
After lunch, Gil called Don.
"Don, when you have time, could you stop by? I have a project I want you to take a look at."
"Sure Gil, We're finishing up some driveways in a new development this afternoon. I'll stop by around 3:00-3:30."
"That'll work. I'll see you later."
Gil came back down stairs and into the kitchen, getting a drink of water.
Grace came in with a load of dish towels to put away.
"Don's coming by this afternoon. I'm going to have him build me a landing strip."
Grace closed the lower cabinet. "For what?"
"The planes Brad and I are going to buy."
"Gil Conner! Don't you go off and get yourself killed before our babies are even born!"
"Don't worry. These planes are safe….. almost crash-proof."
"Yeah, just like you're almost bullet proof. Don't forget, I've seen the scars!"
"Don't worry, we'll be extremely safe. I want to see my children grow up too."
Don arrived at 3:15 and Gil took him out to the range to meet Brad.
"Don, meet Brad Palmer. He and I go way back. He knows everything about the place. Right now, he's working on building us a firing range and we're in need of a compactor. You have one we could use for two or three days?"
"Sure, I've got a mid-sized one we use on driveways. We just finished the housing development project and won't need it for a while. I'll have the guys bring it over in the morning."
"Now, the other reason I wanted you over here. I want you to build me a 1500 foot landing strip, packed gravel, like Brad is doing here."
"You're getting a plane?"
"As a matter of fact, two of them. One for me and one for Brad. Brad will lay out the strip, stake it and mark the parameters of the hangar. I just need you to build me a level strip."
"No problem. I've built 'em before. When do you need it?"
"No hurry, we've got to get the hangar and the planes built. Just work on it when you have some free time. I'll pay your rates."
"No problem. We can probably get started on the earth moving next week."
"Okay. Brad, can you have everything laid out by then?"
"Sure, if you can let me borrow Billy.
"I think we can shift his studies around a little to give you some help."
"That'll work."
That night, while they were eating dessert, Gil told Billy that Brad asked for his assistance in laying out a landing strip.
"A landing strip? For what?" Billy asked.
"For the planes Brad and I are getting."
"NEAT! I want to learn to fly some day."
Gil smiled at Grace. "We'll see."
Grace rolled her eyes.
"Anyway, Billy, if this is going to interfere with your studies, we'll get him some other help or I'll drop from whatever I'm doing and help him."
"No! I can do it! I can do my modules and help him too."
"Okay, as long as you can do your studies each day. You can take the Rokon down to the worksite tomorrow."
Billy's grin got even wider.
"After dinner, I've got something I want to show you."
After they helped Grace clean the kitchen after dinner, Gil pulled out the FEDEX boxes and started unpacking.
"What are these?" Billy asked.
"Well, I guess you'd call them high-powered air rifles, but they are powerful enough to kill a person if not handled correctly. Rifles similar in function to these called Girardoni guns were carried on the Lewis & Clark expedition during the early 1800's. They only used them for demonstration to show the Indians what great magic the white men had. I ordered three different barrel sleeves in different calibers. We can even use these for hunting and are a lot quieter than propellant powered bullets."
"Neat!"
"I will teach you how to handle guns and shoot, but just one unsafe act stops the training then and there. You must handle guns safely at all times."
"I'll do everything you tell me Dad."
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Post by ncsfsgm on Nov 13, 2021 6:42:12 GMT -6
Chapter 73
Brad had Billy driving the compactor. If Grace had seen, she probably would have pitched a fit, but Billy was very conscientious about what he was doing. Brad was using the front end loader spreading gravel in areas that needed a little more. They had just finished packing down the ¾ inch gravel when Brad's phone rang. "Mr. Palmer? Your vehicle is ready."
"Great! Can I pick it up in the morning?"
"That's fine Sir. We have a secure holding area."
"Also, I would like to go ahead and pay for the repairs."
"I'll switch you to accounting…."
They had the range packed down and ready to emplace the target stand holes when they called it a day.
"Billy, I have to take Allie down to Newport in the morning to get her car, so I won't be here. Work on your home schooling while I am gone and we'll pick up where we left off. If you want something to do before I get back tomorrow, you can lay two of these pieces of pipe at each of the range marker stakes. These are what's going to hold the target frames up."
"Okay Brad, no problem."
On the way back to his trailer, Brad stopped by Mollie's cabin, knocked on the door and Allie answered.
"Allie, your car is ready. I'll run you down in the morning to pick it up."
"Good! I got my credit cards replaced and my bank account is locked so Jerry can't get to anything. I'll be able to pay for the repairs."
"I'll pick you up in the morning, say, about 8:30?"
"That's fine, I'll be ready."
Gil called Boss Buildings in Knoxville to get a price on a 40x80 foot hangar. He was surprised at the relatively inexpensive price and said he'd be down to talk to them.
Gil went downstairs and told Grace he needed to go to Knoxville and asked did she want to go.
?No, I don't think so. Why don't you take Billy. He needs a break from the books."
When Gil called Billy, he came bounding down the stairs with Sandy on his heels. They all three left a smiling Grace watching them drive off.
"Could I have a copy of the invoice?" Allie asked.
When the accounting person handed her the invoice and Allie saw the bill had been paid, she turned to Brad.
"Did you pay this?"
"Yes."
"I don't know how to pay you back with a credit card."
"Then pay me no attention." Brad said, turning and walking out the door.
Allie rushed to catch with him. "I can't let you do this!"
"That's all well and good, but there's nothing you can do about it right now, except buy me lunch. Take me to the Family Farm Restaurant across the street."
Allie looked at him, then across the street at the restaurant. "Let me get my car. I'll meet you there."
Billy and Sandy followed Gil into the building to meet with the salesman. Sandy laid quietly at Billy's feet as Gil gave the salesman the specifics of what he needed the building worked the door size and color schemes. It didn't take long. The salesman wrote up the contract, Gil paid a deposit, and they were on the way out the door, only to pull into a White Castle a few blocks down to load up on sliders, 1/3 without pickles."
Grace and Mollie had set up the sewing machine in the Great Room and were sewing Baby Crib Skirts and using some different cloth patterns to make Sleeveless Onesies. Grace laughed.
"The babies will never be able to wear all the onesies I've sewn for them!"
"Have more babies!" Mollie grinned.
"Well, let me get these two into diapers a couple of sizes larger first, then I'll think about it." Grace quipped. "Are Allie and Brad spending any time together?"
"Not so you would notice, but there's been a lot of watching out the windows." Mollie grinned.
"I think they'd make a great couple." Grace said.
"I think so too, but it's up to them."
Brad held the door for Allie as she went into the restaurant. They got a table and hit the buffet, both settling on chicken & dumplings and a small bowl of fried okra. Brad got them both a glass of iced tea and dug in.
After a few minutes, Allie looked at Brad. "I can't let you pay for my car."
Brad took a drink of tea, looking across the rim of the glass at her.
"And why not."
"I don't want to be owing anyone, anything."
"Then do one of those 'pay it forward' things. You know, just help someone out like I helped you."
"You know, sometimes you can be very annoying."
"Yep, that's me, Mr. Vexatious, besides, you're buying lunch."
"That no way enough to pay that repair bill!"
"Then, Ms. Tenacious, you owe me for a lot of lunches, but I really prefer dinner, along with some dancing maybe."
Allie smiled, shook her head and stabbed a piece of okra and ate it.
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Post by gipsy on Nov 13, 2021 7:40:30 GMT -6
Thanks for the update.
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Post by ydderf on Nov 13, 2021 9:18:08 GMT -6
Thank you for the update.
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Post by texican on Nov 13, 2021 12:35:55 GMT -6
After a few minutes, Allie looked at Brad. "I can let you pay for my car."
i,
can should be can't.
Texican....
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Post by ncsfsgm on Nov 13, 2021 22:35:54 GMT -6
Chapter 74
Billy went down to help Brad finish putting in the target stand holders. They measured out firing lanes and using the theodolite, laid out the lines down the edges of the firing lanes and painted them with rubberized black paint. They did this out to 100 meters to take in any short-barreled rifles and shotguns. The took pattern ideas out of an American Shooters magazine and built movable bench rests for the 200 meter range and tables for the pistol range. Billy couldn't wait to try out the Air Rifles with the shooting rests. However, they still had the runway to mark out. Cutting more marking stakes, They surveyed and spent the rest of the afternoon marking out the STOL runway for Don and his crew. When they were finished, they 'high-fived' each other and put their tools away. Gil had plowed the cover crop under in the garden a week ago and decided now to disk and harrow it for planting the next week. Doing this right after breakfast left him more time in the morning to get started doing the other rooms in the Chamber. To keep the clutter down, they hauled up enough lumber and plywood to do the lower portion of the first structure. Even Allie volunteered to help. Gil had changed the plans so there was less cutting and the walls went up quick. Allie kept the coffee going and the water dispenser filled, and an eye on Brad.
Once the lower walls were tied in, Gil and Brad applied the outside sheathing, put the sound-proofing, wiring, and outlets in. The decided to hold off on the paneling until they could do it all at one time. When Billy came up on the Rokon, he switched with Gil and Gil began laying out and cutting the stringers for the stairs. Allie finally got into the act and cut the tread and riser caps. This construction went three times as fast as it had before. Gil checked the computer monitoring the power usage and everything was in the green.
Next week was dedicated to planting the garden so not much construction was going to be done. They finished up the week getting lights installed and finishing the storage cabinets under the stairs. They would install the beds and nightstands as they were received from Johnny Parsons. Don and his crew were about finished with the runway were doing the last of the passes with the compactors.
Gil went by and looked at the garden. They were going to need more than the one wheelbarrow they had been using. He wrote a note in his notebook. Also, Gil sat down with Mollie, Allie, and Grace to see what type of hand tools they needed extra for the open garden. When their list was compiled, Gil and Billy went to Tractor Supply and loaded up on everything. They stored the new tools in the tool shed Gil and Brad had built from the barnwood stacked by the equipment barn. On the side, Brad and Gil plotted to get everything planted by Thursday and leave early Friday morning to drive down to Brasstown, N.C. to talk airplanes.
Sunday afternoon, Gil and Grace had a cookout. Brad came a little late and walked over to Gil, who was cooking in the outdoor kitchen.
"I called Jimmy to see about a fuel tank. He's got a 1000 gallon tank that sits up high enough we wouldn't need a pump. I went ahead and bought it, fuel and PRI-G but told him not to deliver until we had the hangar built."
"Good, we can take that off the 'To Do' list.
"Are we going to need any special tools or anything for the STOLs?"
"Nope. It's just a 200 horsepower gasoline engine. No different than a car. Did you download the pricelist?"
"Yeah. I'm going to get all the options….loaded. $50,000 isn't that much for a new plane. Hell, $100,000 is not bad."
Mollie and Allie came out with trays of condiments and rolls."
"There you are!" Mollie said. "Allie was afraid you weren't coming."
Brad looked at Allie, who shifted her eyes and blushed.
Grace and Billy came out with glasses filled with ice and a pitcher of tea and a large bowl of fries.
"Are we ready?" Grace asked.
"Taking the last of the burgers off now."
Mollie gave the blessing and they started building their burgers.
"Billy, you want to take the Air Rifles down and shoot some this afternoon?" Gil asked.
"Heck yeah!"
"Okay, as soon as we clean up after lunch, we'll take them down."
Billy was extra helpful helping clean up after lunch. Gil and Brad got the rifles out, charged the tanks and put the .22 sleeves in. they loaded everything into the back of the Gator and drove it down to the range, Billy following on the Rokon.
Gil walked Billy through the operation of the rifle, safety procedures, sighting and zeroing the rifle. After four shots, with adjustment to the scope, Billy was hitting bullseyes.
"Billy, I'll let you use this rifle to keep the crows out of the garden, but make sure you always are aware of what is behind that target. NEVER shot toward the greenhouse.
"I won't Dad."
Gil and Brad sat back and watched Billy shoot for the next hour, having him recharge the air tank with the hand pump to make him appreciate conserving his shots. Finally, Gil called a halt and they packed everything back up, going back to the house.
Billy took the equipment in to put it away.
"You want a drink, Brad?"
"No, I don't think so. I think I'll go for a walk." Brad said, looking over at Allie sitting beside Mollie.
"Allie. Would you like to take a walk?"
Allie shifted in her seat and looked at Mollie.
"Go on." Mollie said. "I'll go down when I'm ready."
Allie took Brad's arm as they went down the steps and down the drive.
"I'm charging you fifty cents for this walk." Brad said.
"Charging me! Why?"
"Well, you haven't taken me out to dinner to begin paying me back and I have to recover my funds somehow."
"So, do you have a published pricelist of things I can do to pay you back?"
"Not really, I'm sorta calling them on the fly."
"Oh! I wonder what you'll come up with next?"
Work started early, Monday morning. Billy and Brad placed guide strings to keep the plantings straight and Gil and Mollie transplanted the seedlings and starter pots. Billy and Brad grabbed trays of garlic and onion starters and set those out. Then when Mollie got stiff from bending over, Billy switched with her to set out the tomato plants. Rows of okra, collards, beds of mustard greens and turnips, The last row they planted after the sweet corn was a row of Moon and Stars watermelons. Billy began rolling out soaker hoses while Gil and Brad set up the hose manifold Gil had built. Everyone looked around smiled. Tired, but proud.
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Post by ncsfsgm on Nov 13, 2021 22:37:56 GMT -6
Chapter 75
Gil was on a roll so he took the tractor and plow down near the river and plowed a couple of food plots for beets and rape. Brad drove a Gator with a seed broadcaster on the back and planted the fields then Gil came back with the harrow and smoothed everything down. Gil had seen rare signs of grouse and quail, so they added small fields planted with an upland game food plot mix for them. Grouse and quail had become scarce in Northeast Tennessee in the last few years, but a small population had been on his grandfather's old property. He would look into getting more feeders to set out and try to expand the populations.
Gil, Bad and Billy worked at least part of each day building the sleeping quarters in The Chamber. When Don could get away, he would lend a hand. Gil ordered the plastic barrels and desiccant and they began storing sealed drums with wheat, several kinds of beans, and other foodstuffs for long-term storage in the relatively smaller chamber, freeing up storage space in the larger chamber.
Grace didn't move far from the house these days. She was carrying twins, and she showed it. Mollie kept a watchful eye on Grace and Gil expanded the Chamber's communications by running a cell phone booster and a antenna relay through the cable race. Now, they could receive and send calls from inside the underground facility. Gil got a burner phone and set it up so that was the main phone for the Chamber.
The babies came sooner than the doctor had estimated. Mollie saw the signs and had everyone prepared. When it came time, Gil already had Grace's bag of 'essentials' in his truck and was at the County Hospital in 8 minutes. At 8:55 PM, 8 lb., 1 oz. Alan Garrett Conner made his appearance followed two minutes later by his beautiful sister, Alana Marie Conner coming in at 6 lb., 8 oz.
Gil choked up when he saw his two beautiful children laying in their mother's arms, nursing. He bent over and kissed Grace. "I think we did pretty good!" He said.
"They are just beautiful. Gil!"
"Is there anything I can get you?"
"You better start building a chicken coop, and maybe get some pigs. These little ankle biters are going to try and eat us out of house and home."
Gil laughed. "I'll get right on it."
"The doctor says I should be able to come home tomorrow afternoon."
"Well, everything is ready."
"Could you hold the water cup for me, my arms, as you can see, are full."
Gil held the iced water cup and put the straw in her mouth, setting it back down when she was finished.
"I am serious about the chicken coop. Eggs ar going up every week. Get some Guineafowl also. I don't want any ticks around my babies."
"Yes Ma'am."
He would build her a chicken coop but it was time to bring home his surprise for her. Gil bought a 4-seater diesel UV34-XL with a full all-weather cab and had some additions done to it. A race car fabricator up in Kingsport built some baby seats molded with fiberglass and lined with memory foam in different sizes to be changed out as the babies grew. The whole assemble took up the whole two back seats of the ATV. Grace liked to get out, now she could take the babies for a ride too. Brad had the seats made and the guy was working on a different configuration of seats for when the twins got older. Brad also had the UV34 custom painted and had "Mamma Mobile" decoratively airbrushed across the hood." The vehicle was locked in the 20' trailer ready for the reveal.
The next afternoon, Gil and Mollie took Brad's Suburban to the hospital and brought Grace and the babies home. Allie had the deck decorated with a "Welcome Home" sign and the UV34 parked by the steps. Grace laughed and gave everyone a kiss. Inside, two cradle swings awaited for Mollie and Allie to finally let go of the twins. Mollie finally put Alana down and continued making chicken and dumplings and Gil took Alan and Allie took Alana.
Finally, they laid them in their cradles. Grace's mouth was watering smelling the dinner cook, but she settled for a bowl of Cole slaw to tide her over. Gil went to his computer and found a good set of free plans for a large chicken coop with a large, covered run and 10 nesting boxes. He downloaded the plans and printed them out, setting aside the materials list. He would have the materials delivered and find out where he could buy some chickens and Guineafowl. Maybe someone at the Farmer's Co-op would know.
"Dad! We could feed the chickens earthworms!" Billy said.
"That could get expensive buying earthworms."
"No, I could raise them. They eat organic material. I could make a worm bed and there's ten old round hay bales along the side of the hayfield that are rotting. I could use those and get the leaves out of the ditches on the drive and grind them up with the chipper. We'd have plenty food for them."
"Well, write me up a plan on how you can accomplish this."
Billy quickly went to his room to work on his plan.
The materials we due to be delivered tomorrow. Brad and he had already put in the foundation posts made from odd lengths of telephone posts that had been behind Bill's shed.
"Mollie knows where you can get Guineafowl." Grace said, changing Alan's diaper.
"Well, I'd better pick them up first thing in the morning. We're going to be busy the next few days building the coop."
"She said she'd go with you. She knows the lady. Take some of the cardboard boxes to bring them back in. They're young, only about six weeks old and we only need about ten."
"Yes Ma'am."
Gil and Mollie picked up the Guineas the next morning. The lady talked them into also taking an adult rooster and hen to "teach the young'uns how to act." After they turned them loose at the woodline next to the equipment barn, Gil went to help Brad, who had already started layout of the beams. By lunch, they had the joists in. They'd start on the floor after lunch.
They quickly had a ¾" plywood floor down that afternoon and covered the whole floor with a large piece of the pond liner they had left over from the greenhouse beds. After getting that laid, tightened, and stapled, they called it a day.
The last thing they put up was the wide, wire screen door at the end that would allow entry to the run to scrape the accumulated chicken manure and dump it in the compost pile.
When it came time to purchase layers, Mollie came through again. They got 30 Barred Rock layer hens and two roosters, half of them not yet ready to start laying. Gil had purchased several hundred pound sacks of chicken feed and 25 pound bags of oyster shells that were stored in the feed shed he had added to his building plans. When they turned the chickens loose into the run, of course the first thing they did was start eating.
"Gil, I was checking the LTS foods we've been rotating food out of and we probably need to order replacements."
"Sure, go ahead."
"Sit down, I want to talk to you." Grace said.
"Uh-oh." Thought Gil.
"I'd like to see Allie take over as the acquisitions person, or whatever you call them, for the Chamber. Could we afford to pay her a salary so she wouldn't have to get a job in town?"
"WHEW!"
"Sure, no problem. We can pay her for 40 hours a week at $35 an hour."
"Thank you. All she's been able to find is some elderly sitting jobs."
"Pay her out of the cash in the safe for the first week, in advance."
Grace got up and kissed him. "You are such a good man. God surely bless me that night on the riverbank."
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Post by ncsfsgm on Nov 13, 2021 22:39:20 GMT -6
Chapter 76
Billy took it has his job to see the feeders and the grit dispenser were filled every morning and the waterers were clean and operational. Before the first pot of coffee had finished perking, they would hear the Rokon start up and head down toward the chicken coop. Billy had presented his plan to Gil on how he would raise earthworms and Gil had approved it, but added a leaf vacuum trailer with a long hose to clean the ditches of leaves. The trailer had its own gas motor and would grind the leaves up as they went through the vacuum system.
Gil purchased a laptop computer for Allie and transferred the data files for the Chamber inventory from Grace's computer to Allie's. Allie was now in charge of LTS acquisitions.
Brad got up from the little dinette at the knock at the door. When he opened the door, Allie stood there with a basket in her hands.
"I made a lasagna and some brownies."
Brad smiled and took the basket. "Come on in!"
Brad sniffed the aromas wafting up from the basket. "Well, this must be worth at least $5.00."
Allie went up on her tiptoes and kissed his cheek. "And how much is that worth?"
Brad looked at her, stunned. "Debt canceled."
"Oh no! I pay my debts fully. I don't accept charity. I'll work it off somehow."
"Lady, you are pernicious. Have a seat in my kingdom."
Allie took a seat at the dinette. "Go ahead and eat if you want. It's probably cool enough now so the cheese doesn't stick to the roof of your mouth. Oh! There's garlic bread wrapped up in aluminum foil in there also."
"I'm sorry, I've just got to have some of this. It smells delicious!"
Brad got a plate and silverware out of the cabinet and cut a big square of the lasagna. He took a bite, savoring the taste and unwrapped the garlic bread. Jumping up, he went to the frig and got out a partial bottle of wine, dividing it into two glasses. Taking a seat, he took another bite of the lasagna.
"This is really good!"
Allie watched Brad as he ate, slowly sipping her wine. Brad finished the lasagna and took the last bit of garlic bread and wiped the sauce off the plate and popping the bread into his mouth.
"Sorry for my table manners. I really don't eat like this in public, but that was REALLY good."
Allie grinned. "Well, I'm glad you enjoyed it."
"I'll wait to eat a brownie later. Some people have an affinity for chocolate and wine. I never developed one."
"That's okay. To each his own."
"Let me put this in the fridge and wash up my dishes and we can go outside and sit. The ridges block a lot of the light from town and the stars are brilliant, if we move out a little ways from under the awning."
"Okay."
Allie watched Brad intently as he did his kitchen chores and wiped the table and sink down.
"Ready?" Brad asked.
Allie got out of the dinette booth, went to the door and stepped out, closely followed by Brad. Grabbing two chairs, he moved them out just beyond the edge of the awning then went back and cut off the light next to the door, throwing the 'patio' area into darkness.
"I love this time of the evening. The shooting stars, the silence, the darkness of space, it all makes me feel so inconsequential." Brad said, lost in thought.
"Well, to me you aren't!" Allie said. "Why did you help me in Newport?"
"Oh, I saw a person in distress and wanted to see if I could help….at first."
"At first? What do you mean?"
"Well, like I said, it's always been in me to help people where I can. When I began talking to you, something came over me. If you had told me you were headed to Nome Alaska, I would have taken you there without any hesitation whatsoever."
"Well you were my knight in shining armor, riding up on your white steed….or rather you were towing a white travel trailer, offering to rescue me from my pit of despair."
Brad grinned in the darkness. "I guess I did pretty good, didn't I?"
Allie reached over and hit his right arm. "I'm serious! You were my Guardian Angel that day."
"And I will continue to be so, fair maiden, until the time for you to say, 'Be Gone'!"
There was silence for a few seconds.
"I don't think that is ever going to happen." Allie said softly.
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Post by biggkidd on Nov 14, 2021 0:46:39 GMT -6
Nicely done again fine sir!
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Post by freebirde on Nov 14, 2021 6:08:48 GMT -6
Bantam chickens are good for clearing ticks. Fast and agile enough to evade most predators. Not as good "guard dogs" as guinea fowl, but can get places a guinea fowl can't. If they start to have a problem with snakes, get some peafowl.
Gil might want to check the sensitivity on alarms where the fowl flock.
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Post by gipsy on Nov 14, 2021 10:02:56 GMT -6
Thanks for a fine update.
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Post by udwe on Nov 14, 2021 20:59:57 GMT -6
Pretty good size for twins. Just glad they were healthy. We're expecting grandbaby #8 in April.
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Post by ncsfsgm on Nov 14, 2021 22:52:29 GMT -6
Chapter 77
Because the arrival of the twins had canceled their trip to Brasstown, Gil called Just Aircraft and asked when would be the best time to come talk to them. Thursday turned out to be the time because they we usually off on some fly-in on the weekends. Gil and Brad pushed everything off their plans and left very early Thursday morning headed down I-40. At 9:00 they were drinking coffee at Just Aircraft and going over options and paint schemes. Neither wanted anything fancy as far as paint. Brad wanted a Forest Green solid paint job and Gil wanted Rich Brown. By 2:00 they were pointed north on 74, headed for home. Gil called Grace and told her they would be home by 7:00.
"So, how are we going to get these planes home?" Brad asked.
"Well, I was going to take the 20' trailer down, load one of the planes in it, and fly the other one home, but the length of an XL is 21' 8", so I called Just and ordered a trailer to haul one of the planes back."
"Who gets to fly home."
"Whoever loses the coin toss."
"Right."
Gil finally got all the logs out of the forest, split and palletized. They should have more than enough wood for the next winter unless it as unusually harsh. All the trimmed limbs were taken to the Chamber where they had casual fires when they were working there. They were working on the last set of bedrooms and would be done in about three days, minus the bedroom furniture, which would come around two weeks later. Sets of clothes for all seasons were being stored there. Grace purchased several RubberMaid Cargo boxes and packed clothes by season and market them. Soon, other people did the same thing. On everyone's mind was to be able to move into the Chamber at an moment's notice and not do without. Gil and Brad also were buying ammo and duplicates of the guns they already had and a few new ones. Gil added two large gun safes to the Chamber to keep their weapons and except for a couple of thousand rounds in individual homes, all of the ammo was kept in marked, sealed drums in the Chamber.
They were canning something every week out of the greenhouse. Yellow and white onions were dried and sacked as well as garlic. Gil purchased a freeze dryer and they began freeze drying a lot of the vegetables and storing them in vacuumed mylar bags. A portion of the potatoes were stored the same way.
During a lull in canning, Gil received a call from Just that their planes were ready. Brad and Gil packed some camping gear and were soon on their way to Brasstown. The hanger hand been completed two weeks previously and a full fuel tank was installed just last week. All they needed were the planes. They were going to do two days of familiarization flights in the Brasstown area before they returned home.
This was old fashioned stick flying and Brad loved it! They were landing and taking off from what seemed like impossible areas. You could almost land the plane in a #2 tin tub.
Gil was having just as much fun. The two days of familiarization burned away as quickly as the morning fog. It was time to go home.
Gil pulled out a coin. "Call it."
"Nope. I appreciate the chance but I think the first person to land on that airstrip is you." Brad said.
"I don't mind if you're the first!" Gil said.
"I know, but I've made up my mind. Help me load my plane on the trailer."
Gil watched Brad drive off . He had almost a four drive. The flight would only take about an hour. Love those straight-line distances!
Gil lined up on the airstrip approaching from the south over Cherokee Lake. The winds were perfect. Although he could have landed much shorter with the headwind he had, Gil let it roll another 50 feet before he applied the brakes and pulled onto the apron in front of the hangar. As he was getting out of the airplane, he saw Grace's UV34 coming down the road. He chocked the wheels and waited for her. As she got closer, he wasn't sure but he thought she had the twins with her. Grace got out and jumped into his arms.
"My babies wanted to see their Daddy!"
They walked over to the 34 and Gil looked down to see two little grinning faces. Gil picked up one and Grace the other. Gil couldn't tell them apart yet without checking their diaper.
"Who…"
"You have Alana." Grace grinned.
Gil held and played with the kids for a little bit then put them back in the carriers. There wasn't anything he could do until Brad got in. the towbar was on the trailer Brad was towing, so they went to the house.
As they were just coming by the chicken coop when they saw Allie come out onto Mollie's porch and wave them down.
What time is Brad getting here?"
Gil looked at his watch. "Oh… around 2:00."
"Oh… okay. He wouldn't tell me…said he want it to be a surprise."
Gil grinned at Grace as she drove on to the house.
"She's had that lost-puppy look ever since Brad and you left." Grace grinned.
"That bad, hunh?"
Gil helped bring the babies in and went to his office to file the plane paperwork away.
"Do you want a snack or anything?" Grace asked, as he went back into the kitchen.
"No, I'll just grab a glass of tea."
"How do you like your plane?"
"Oh, I love it, and if you like the hovercraft, you'll love the STOL."
"Maybe tomorrow."
They sat and talked about the greenhouse and what they were planning to can or freeze-dry next. Gil looked at his watch.
"I'm going down to the hangar and get things ready. I'll have my phone and radio."
Gil took the Gator down and parked it in front of the STOL, ready to attach the towbar. He opened up the hangar and walked around. The only thing they really hadn't done was install a bathroom. They had a small battery bank that powered the lights and that was about the only amenity they had They probably should put in a composting toilet. Walking outside and around the building, he drained some of the iced tea. Ahhhh, Freedom!"
Gil quickly got everything back in place when he heard the Power Wagon approaching. Walking back around to the hangar door, he waited for Brad to pull up.
"Made it!"
"Any problems?"
"None whatsoever. How was the flight?"
"Beautiful, and too short. Let me get the towbar off and I'll help you put the wings on. You going to take her up this afternoon?"
"I think I'll wait until tomorrow. Allie wants to take a ride."
Gil smirked as he walked back to the trailer and unstrapped the towbar. Yep, that bad…
After they had both planes backed into the hangar, they closed the door and Gil backed the trailer around to the side of the hangar the covered and strapped a large tarp over it.
"If you take the tarp off here, be careful of snakes."
"You should get a couple of Peacocks. They're supposed to keep snakes away, and like the Guineas, they eat ticks too."
"If we start having any problems, I'll consider it, but they make such an awful noise!"
"Yeah, you ever run up on one at night, roosting. It'll scare the crap out of you!"
They went and got in the Power Wagon, Gil dropping Brad off at his trailer on the way home. In the rear view mirror, he saw Allie come out of Mollie's cabin and start walking down the road toward Brad's trailer.
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Post by ncsfsgm on Nov 14, 2021 22:54:05 GMT -6
Chapter 78
Don and Annie were coming over for dinner that evening. While Gil played with the kids, Grace, Mollie and Allie were preparing meatloaf, mashed potatoes and vegetables to go with it. Yeast roll dough was rising in a covered bowl in the pantry. Gil finally placed the babies in their cradle swings and set them in motion, both falling right to sleep. "Did you tire them out?" Grace asked, as Gil entered the kitchen.
"Yep! Where's Billy?"
"He went to dump the kitchen composter bin into the worm bed."
"I really need to get him an ATV vehicle to use. Probably another Gator."
"Well, sometimes he's used Mollie's to do errands." Grace reminded him.
"Okay, I'll get another one. I might as well get Allie something also to go back and forth to the Chamber."
Allie's eyebrow rose as she looked up from peeling carrots.
Mollie smiled. "What's got you in such a good mood?"
"Why wouldn't I be in a good mood. I have my friends and family around me and I was just about to open a bottle of wine for you ladies. What's not to be happy about!"
Gil walked out of the kitchen. Grace smiled and shook her head. "God! I love that man!"
Gil opened the door and greeted Don and Annie. Annie went directly to the women congregated in the kitchen while Gil and Don went out back and sat on the deck.
"We brought some cargo boxes to store up at the Chamber." Don said.
"We can take them up a little later. You been staying busy?"
"Yeah, we've been working steady. What are you doing Thursday?"
"Nothing that's pressing. Why, what's up?"
"I saw a sign for an estate auction over on Hack Hollow Road. You usually see those things prominently displayed. It's almost as if they were trying to hide it. I'm thinkin somebody is settin' up to make a killing."
"Could be. Maybe Brad and I will head over that way and see if they have any good stuff."
"Yeah, I think I'll go too. The sign says it starts at 9:00."
"Okay. We'll meet you over there then."
Gil got up and went to the kitchen.
"Allie, where's Brad?"
"At his trailer, I guess."
"Well, get hold of him and tell him to come up here to eat. You and Mollie too."
Gil came back to the Great Room. "Don, do you have any weapons you're going to bring up to the Chamber."
"Well, I have a Remington 1100, a Remington 700 in .308, and Ruger 1911. I really don't have anything else."
"Well, you need to think on it. Remember, you might have to leave right from your job site. You may not have time to go home and get what you might want to have extra."
Yeah, you're right. I'll check with Reaper's and see what they have."
"Look for something in 5.56. I've got a lot of that."
Brad walked around the edge of the house and came up on the deck.
"I heard you say something about 5.56?"
"Don's doing to look for guns to keep in the Chamber. I told him I had plenty of 5.56 ammo."
"Don, look, but don't buy. I've got something coming in Tuesday you might want to look at first."
"What do you have?" Gil asked.
"Not sure yet, but I suspect it might be interesting."
"You, Don, and I are going to an estate auction Thursday. Let's go see if there's anything we can use here."
Odd day to have one around here with people at work during the week."
"Yeah, that's what we thought.
This is a nice place here Gil, great land, But you gave up a great military career to be a farmer?"
"No Don, I came here to get away from the B.S. that has sprouted up in the last few years. Oh, it started long ago but it has welled up so much recently to where if I was still at Ft. Carson, I'd probably be in the brig for killing an idiot. Don, you probably wouldn't understand the feeling you get from someone with the IQ of a soda cracker getting promoted over you because of their skin color, or how many hours combat soldiers are pulled from training to listen to someone explain why we shouldn't rape women or grab their boobs. Really? Then we have the government officials who open their pie-holes and spill the beans on some operation or operational techniques that compromises what we are doing and sometimes gets people killed. I almost ate a bullet because of crap like that. No, times have changed. This country is getting weaker. When whatever happens, happens because of the weakness the people who run this country, I want to be here, surviving in relative comfort as the rest of them go to hell. A lot of innocent people are going to be hurt, but again a lot of them get hurt every time they raise taxes and say it will benefit the people. If you don't see it that way, then I will pay you back for every dime you have invested here, no hard feelings."
"No, I understand, at least partially, what you are saying. I've lost government contracts because I wasn't the right color, or sex, even though I have a long history of successful project finishes. No, I'm with you. I'll keep an eye out for things that will cement our position here. How's the airstrip working out?"
"It's great. When I landed yesterday, the wind was coming down the river and I could have landed on a handkerchief."
"I built that strip to your specs and didn't think about it at the time, but I think I need to put a turn-around area at the south end of the strip. Mostly, the winds are going to be from a northerly direction and if they aren't, you probably should keep your butt at home and cuddle with the wifey anyway."
"We're taking the women on rides tomorrow. You want to stop by and see how much room we need to turn around?"
"Yeah, give me a call when you're ready."
"GUYS? COME ON. DINNER!"
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Post by ncsfsgm on Nov 14, 2021 22:56:03 GMT -6
Chapter 79
The women wanted to go to the auction also, so to be on the safe side, Grace took her Jeep, pulling a trailer, Brad pulled a trailer, and Gil pulled a trailer. They were there 45 minutes early and it was apparent the bidders were there to bid on the land and not on household inventory. By late in the morning, the women had accumulated quite a few homemade quilts, new blankets still in their packaging, 2 antique treadle sewing machines, Bolts of cloth, Boxes of packaged and loose buttons, an assortment of zippers, thread in every color you could think of on different sizes of spools, boxed miscellaneous sewing accessories, every piece of cast iron cookware they could get their hands on, two Barrister Stacking Bookcases, and 4 large boxes of kitchen utensils. In an outbuilding Gil found some old, stacked lumber. On closer examination, there was 160 board feet of oak, 80 board feet of walnut, and 145 board feet of cedar rough-cut lumber. They also found several rolls of blind fabric for making deer blinds and metal rack shelves they could use in the Chamber. . Don found out this had been advertised as a land auction. The women made another sweep and picked up a few more things because they were being sold so cheap, mostly crockery.
Everyone was at the hangers the next morning. Grace didn't want to leave the babies behind so they were in their carriers on the XL34. After the Gator was used to tow the planes out onto the apron, Grace pulled the 34 into the hangar. Mollie would sit with Alana and Alan until someone relieved her. Gil and Brad did their walk-arounds and got Grace and Allie belted into the aircraft, got in, and started the engines. Gil let Brad take off first and sat and watched as Brad taxied down to the southern end of the strip and turned around. Revving his engine, Brad's plane quickly began moving forward and just as quickly was in the air, turning left to fly down the river toward Cherokee lake. Gil taxied down to the end of the field, turned around and raced along the strip, quickly leaped into the air and followed the route taken by Brad.
"You got your strobes on Brad?" Gil asked over the radio.
"Roger."
"Roger, I've got them now. You are farther out than I thought you'd be."
Gil stayed about a mile behind Brad as they flew over Cherokee Dam, then over to Morristown, then back to Bluff View. Grace absolutely loved it! He let her lightly hold the stick and feel the pedals and he mostly flew straight and level. As soon as Brad was on the ground, Gil began his approach. When Gil was taxiing up to the apron, he saw Don there watching them. Gil shut the plane down and helped Grace out. An excited Billy was waiting planeside to get in.
"What's the wingspan on the STOL?" Don asked.
"About thirty-one and a half feet."
"Okay, I'll get the guys out here and put a sixty-five foot turn around at the south end of the strip."
Billy was strapped in so Gil did a quick inspection and started the plane up as Brad taxied down with Mollie in the passenger seat. They followed the same route to keep things simple, Billy watching everything Gil did. Gil let he feel the pedals and lightly hold the stick also. Billy was hooked. As they were on final, Gil noticed a large pickup truck towing a gooseneck tilt trailer hauling a 20' container. Brad was in a Gator heading to it. Gil landed and Billy helped him put the planes in the hanger and get the door shut. Grace, and the babies, along with Allie and Mollie, headed for the house. Gil and Billy headed to the container to see what was up. The container had been dropped off next to the equipment barn and the truck was leaving as Gil drove up.
"What's with the container?" Gil asked.
"I bought it. Thought we could use it for more storage." Brad said, shifting his eyes from Gil to Billy.
"Billy, why don't you go check you your mother. I think she wanted to take some things up to the Chamber. Go ahead and take the Gator."
"Okay Dad!"
Gil turned back to Brad and raised his eyebrows.
"I actually paid $1000 for it, plus shipping. This container originated out of Garden City Terminal in Savannah, not shipped there, but originated there. The shipping address was to an address to a known skinhead organization in Illinois. We might have some neat surprises in there."
"What if it's drugs?"
"They put their best sniffers on it. More than likely there's at least some ammunition in there. "My 'friend' changed the container numbers and filled an empty one with scrap iron. They won't know a thing until the container reaches Skokie. I need some help with the 3.5 generator so I can cut the weld beads."
"Let's go."
Gil went to the shop with Brad and helped him lift the generator onto the back of the Gator. Brad grabbed the steel cutting saw and Gil got the large set of bolt cutters. Brad cranked the generator and began cutting the four 3-inch weld beads on the doors of the container and was quickly done. Gil cut the padlocks and stepped back for Brad to open the doors.
The container was packed to the roof with metal cases. Brad worked one loose and grunting, set it on the ground. He turned the six latches on the lid and lifted it off. Nestled in the foam bed was a M-4 and an assortment of attachments.
"This is a SOPMOD kit for an M4 carbine. I hope they included them for a HK416 too!"
Brad picked up the rifle and looked it over, placed it back and began checking the other components of the system.
"Gil….. no serial numbers on any of it."
"Someone must be cashing in on the side." Gil said. "I'll get a trailer for the Gator. Let's get this stuff into the Chamber."
They got trailers on the Gators and got Billy involved in helping haul the container contents to the Chamber. Gil even hooked the big tilt trailer to the tractor and haul the container contents. Most of half of the container was filled with SOPMOD kits for the M4 and half of those were kits for the HK416 with 20" barrels. There was also 24 Sig Sauer P228 pistols with what looked to be 20 mags each and 12 Glock 21 pistols with 30 mags each. The rest of the container was filled with cases of Lake City Arsenal 5.56 ammo, .45, and 9mm ammo, 1000 rounds to a case.
Don wouldn't have to worry about defensive weapons.
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Post by udwe on Nov 15, 2021 7:04:22 GMT -6
Great addition!
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Post by gipsy on Nov 15, 2021 8:45:11 GMT -6
Thanks for the update
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Post by udwe on Nov 15, 2021 21:29:19 GMT -6
Whoever didn't get their "stuff" is gonna be MAD!
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Post by gipsy on Nov 15, 2021 22:05:58 GMT -6
Naw, It is on the street corners all over Skokie
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Post by papaof2 on Nov 15, 2021 22:40:11 GMT -6
It all goes back to whether the shipper declared contents and a value and paid for that much insurance. Based on a packing list without a declared $$$ value, FedEx refunds shipping charges and $100. In my case, the replacement carb for the inverter generator only cost $50 so I came out OK.
The intended recipients will probably want to storm the shipping office but if the bill of lading says "One 20 ft conex box" and gives the weight, the skinheads will have gotten their conex box at that weight - and they won't have enough armament to successfully storm the place because they'll be chased off by fat guys driving forklifts ;-) The better forklifts can just about turn around in their own length (think zero turn mower) so the driver could wade into a pack of troublemakers and take most of them out with a single spin.
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Post by ncsfsgm on Nov 16, 2021 0:12:28 GMT -6
Chapter 80
Gil called Steve in Nashville to asked about video surveillance systems. "Do you have somewhere I can land a helicopter?"
"I've got a 1500 foot landing strip."
"That'll work. I'll fly out tomorrow, be there around 1300. I wanted to see your place anyway."
"Okay Steve. I look forward to seeing you. Hey! Do you have the coordinates?"
"Yep, it's in your security file."
Gil and Brad watches as the Bell 214ST flew closer and hovered in front of the hangar and set down. When the rotor blades quit turning, Steve Courtney, CEO of Cerberus Security stepped out and walked over to his two old team mates. After giving both men strong embraces, Steve backed up a step and looked at them.
"After that day in the valley, who would have thought we'd still be alive today to be able to even talk about it!"
Gil grinned. "Well, it sure didn't hold you back, Mr. Executive!"
"Hey, I'm not wearing a tie this afternoon! Give me a break!"
"Steve, can we get your pilot anything?" Brad asked.
"Nah, he'll stay with the bird, which has plenty of cold, non-alcoholic beverages in the on-board bar."
"And to think I was going to offer you a cup of spring water!" Gil grinned.
"And I'll gladly accept it. That bar is for clients. I almost let old nightmares eat away at my sanity. Kathy came along and pulled me out of that quagmire. Oh, I still take a drink now and again, but it is seldom. NOW! Show me this redoubt of yours."
They used one of the UH34XLs to ride him around and showed him everything, explaining the history of the area and their plans for the future."
Pulling back around and down next to the equipment barn, Gil stopped the 34 and got out.
"Steve, this fell into our hands the other day." Gil said.
Brad began telling how he had come upon the 20' shipping container.
Steve grinned. "Somebody has been naughty! You guys have thwarted what seems to be a false flag op of one of the three-letter agencies. Before you fire any of those, make sure you go over them with a fine-toothed comb. Be sure to check the firing pin lengths. I'll bet some of them wouldn't even strike the primer. Can I see them?"
"Steve, the next part I want to show you has to be kept really close to your chest. No notes, no records of any of it."
"Scout's, and more important, Team Brother's Honor!"
They all got back into the 34 and drove up to the shelf. When Gil stopped and got out, Steve looked around and suddenly spotted the door and grinned.
"I don't know if I would have spotted this if I didn't know something was here!"
Brad unlocked the outer door, the Steve saw the blast door and grinned. "Oh Yeah!"
Brad swung the blast door open and led the group into the Chamber and turned on the lights.
Steve stopped and slowly looked around.
"Well, well. Guys, I've got something similar to this up in Clay County. No roads to it. It is nothing like this. Mine is just modules buried in the side of a hill. It's so….. modern, I guess you'd call it. This? This I like!"
"I actually found this by accident." Gil said. "Way over in that corner, there were stacks of guns and ammo from the Civil war in pristine condition, and a couple of cases of Double Eagles."
Steve swung to face Gil. "Guns? What kind of guns?"
"Mississippi Rifles, Whitworth Rifles, and Beals revolvers."
"I'd like to have a set of those. I'll give you any price you want!"
"Steve, I have one set left, and they're not for sale. But I will present them to you in friendship."
"Thanks. Yes, this is some setup. This is like 'roughing it,' but not. You have everything you need and room to grow. How much space does this have?"
"I guesstimated around 20,000 square feet floor space, more if you build up. There's another chamber over that way that is only about 10,000 square feet we use for storage and has our water source."
"Amazing! To build something this big, I'd have to spend millions!"
"Well, we've stacked money in here, mostly for building and preps. It's satisfying building from scratch."
"Where's your escape route?"
"It doesn't have one yet. I've got to figure out how to cut through at least 12 meters of rock."
Steve looked at Gil. "I may have just the thing available. You're going to need a 30Kw generator though."
"What?"
"When they built my place, we had to either cut or blast rock to clear the excavation. I've got this 'Weird Harold' working for us, reminds me of that guy in the Bond movies, anyway, he came up with a laser rock cutter. They'd cut a square in the rock, spray it with lake water and the rock would crack off and fall out. He could only cut 1-foot square blocks at a time, but they got rid of a lot of rock that way. It might take you a while, but you could cut a tunnel out of here."
"I don't know if we could operate something like that. Seems sophisticated."
"Not at all! Set it up, square it, push a button and it starts cutting. Size of blocks are preset in the controls. The hard work is moving the rock out of the way. I'll get it shipped up to you and send 'Harold' up for a couple of days to get you familiarized."
"I'd appreciate that Steve. Not having an escape tunnel has been bothering me. Well, this is a bonus, but I want to talk to you about a video surveillance system. I'd like to monitor the outside before we opened the outer door here, and be able to monitor the door area from the house too. I have a cable race bored through the wall for the PV and turbine cables so we could run a cable through it."
"Let me take a look and do a couple of measurements. We have just what you need."
Brad grabbed a 100' tape measure and they went back outside. Looking around and taking down measurements, Steve soon had the information he needed.
"You'll need some help putting this in, but I'll come back with Harold and do it. I don't want my installers in on this. It'll be good to get my hands dirty again. I spend to much time in the office and coddling customers."
"Are you really doing that good around Nashville, Steve?"
"Are you kidding? New stars popping up each day, plenty of money in their pockets, need security systems, and it doesn't make any difference if there's already a system in place, they want THEIR OWN system. The system I'm going to put in here was a surveillance system that came off the horse ranch we just completed. All the equipment was only months old and top quality. It has IR and daylight cameras. There is a module that will be concealed and cabled inside here, and wireless remote to the house."
"Sounds good." Gil said.
"Well, you just get the generator. Let's see, I'll be back here Monday and we can get this show on the road."
"Okay, I'll get you some rooms set. Thanks, Steve."
"No seriously, this will be a mini-vacation spending time with you guys."
They took Steve back down to the helicopter and said their good byes and watched as the helicopter flew west over the river.
"They can use my trailer to stay in when they get here. I'll stay up in the Chamber."
"You sure?"
"No problem. Gives me a chance to test drive my quarters."
"I need to check on a generator and we need to check those weapons."
"You get on the generator, I'll start with the weapons."
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Post by ncsfsgm on Nov 16, 2021 0:13:34 GMT -6
Chapter 81
Gil went to Kingsport and rented a 30Kw generator and an electric trailer valet for 90 days. When he got back, he traded the Power Wagon for the Gator and took the generator up on the shelf. Attaching the valet to the generator tongue, Gil moved the generator to the back chamber. Brad had set up a couple of L.E.D. worklights to illuminate the dining table to disassemble weapons and check critical parts with a micrometer.
"Found anything yet?" Gil asked.
"I've found four M4 firing pins out of tolerance, so far."
"Okay. I'll be down in the greenhouse and garden helping out."
"Roger."
Grace had to twins in a stroller next to her while she picked pole beans. Sandy was laying next to the stroller. Gil grabbed another basket and started picking at the other end of the row. When they met, Gil took her basket and emptied their baskets into a ½ bushel basket in a garden cart.
"What's next?" Gil asked.
"We need to get the okra before the pods get too long."
"Go ahead and watch the kids and take a break. I'll get the okra."
Gil got a pair of garden shears out of Grace's bucket and began cutting okra pods into a river cane hand basket. One he had the okra cut, he set the basket in the garden cart.
"Anything else?"
"No, we'll pick the tomatoes tomorrow. We'll get everything ready tonight to can tomorrow."
"How are you doing the okra?"
"Slice, parboil, bread and freeze."
"Oh, Okay."
Gil took the baskets and put them on the back of the Gator and took them to the house. He set the baskets on the deck and went inside to get some stainless steel bowls and a big pot. Getting a glass of iced tea, he sat down and started stringing beans. Grace soon was back, sat the stroller on the deck, placed the babies in it, wheeled it over next to Gil and began stringing beans also.
Allie showed up with a basket of lettuce, tomatoes, and radishes for the dinner salad and went inside to wash them. Mollie was preparing porkchops and Grace was getting ready to feed the babies. Gil glanced around at everyone and smiled. This was the life he had wanted.
After dinner that night Brad and Gil were sitting on the deck.
"What are you doing first thing in the morning? Gil asked.
"Nothing much."
"I want you to fly with me to pick up some moonshine."
"Wow! I can't stand the taste of the stuff myself."
"This is real smooth, although you have to cut the hell out of it. I'm getting it mostly for medicinal purposes, it's 148 proof."
"Where are we flying to?"
"It's only 35 or so miles, just this side of the Virginia border on the Clinch River. Stuff's made by a kindly Presbyterian deacon who runs a travel trailer camp."
"You're kidding me!"
Gil chuckled. "I kid you not! We'll be back before they start needing us. I'll set up the gas burner and the pressure canner in the morning before we leave."
Billy went as far as the chicken coop with Gil and Brad. They opened up the hangar and rolled out Gil's plane. After doing the walk-around, they strapped in and taxied down to the turn-around. Lifting off the ground, Gil took a forty-five degree azimuth when he cleared the ridge and twenty minutes later Gil was checking the wind and lining up on a small pasture. He was almost hovering as the 21" Tundra tires touched down in the grass. He pulled to the end of the clearing and turned plane into the wind, preparing the plane for take-off. Killing the engine, they heard an old tractor coming through the woods on an old logging trail, pulling a small trailer. The old man came into sight and pulled up next to the plane. Reaching into the trailer, Gil pulled out a box that contained four 1-gallon glass jugs, nestled in a bed of hay and packed tight. Gil set the box behind the seats and paid the man several bills, who thanked him and drove off. Gil checked the plane, buckled in and took off into the wind, not making his turn back to Bluff View until he had cleared the bluffs along the river.
Many hands make light work, and it was just so when Gil and Brad returned back to Bluff View. Each had their job and the work went quickly and efficiently. They canned 15 quarts of green beans and 12 1-pound freezer bags of breaded okra. By noon, they were washing up the pots and utensils. This afternoon, they would pick tomatoes and prepare them for canning tomorrow.
As Gil and Brad washed the tomatoes that afternoon Brad rubbed his back.
"I didn't realize this off-grid homesteading stuff was so hard. You sure you don't want me to put my battle rags on and patrol for a while?"
Gil grinned. "Sure you can, after we've washed the tomatoes."
They were turning these into tomato powder. They would scald and peel the tomatoes, remove the seeds, freeze-dry them, grind them up into powder and add some anti-lumping agent Mollie had ordered from the Farmer's Co-op. The powder and an oxygen absorber would be placed in half-gallon jars and stored in the smaller chamber in their original cardboard boxes.
Monday, Gil and Brad were sitting in a Gator drinking coffee, waiting for Steve to arrive. Billy joined them after he finished checking the feed and water for the chickens and gathering the eggs.
Soon, They heard the noise of a helicopter approaching, the noise echoing off the river bluffs. Steve's helicopter came into sight and landed in front of the hangar. Steve looked up at the windsock on top of the hangar and came over to the Gator, followed by another man.
"I've got heavy lift sling-loading the rig in. They should be here in about 20 minutes. Let Jim, my pilot guide him. He's going to have them set it on the runway."
"That's good, Steve. We're going to get the tractor with the forklift blades and bring it over."
Gil, Brad, this is Harold, my technical genius."
They all shook hands then Harold and Steve stepped out of the way.
Brad drove Gil to the equipment shelter and Gil climbed on the tractor. Earlier, they had added wheel weights to the tractor, not sure what the laser rock cutter weighed.
Gil parked the tractor and watched as the heavy-lift helicopter move slowly in, centering on the airstrip. "Clarksville Helicopter Services" was clearly written on the side of the side of the helicopter.
The heavy-lift set the wooden case down and the crew chief released the cable, dropping it on and around the case. Gil hoped the actual cutter was smaller than the shipping case or they wouldn't be able to get it through the tunnel. The heavy-lift left and the men gathered the sling-load equipment and loaded it into Steve's helicopter, to be dropped off in Clarksville on the way back.
To Gil's relief, when they took the side panels off the wooden shipping case, Gil saw it could indeed fit through the tunnel using the MT-100.
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Post by ncsfsgm on Nov 16, 2021 0:14:38 GMT -6
Chapter 82
There were other boxes in the shipping case and Steve loaded those on the back of the Gator. Billy pulled a Gator with a trailer attached over next to the shipping crate. Carefully lifting the laser cutter, Gil set it down on the flat-bed trailer. Using ratchet straps, they secured the cutter to the trailer. The men stepped back and examined their work.
"I think that's got it." Gil said.
"Steve, Harold, let's drop your bags off at your quarters and we'll go put this puppy in the Chamber." Brad said.
Gil drove the tractor back to the equipment shed, slowly followed by Billy towing the trailer. Billy picked Gil up and they continued up the ridge to the shelf. Brad, Steve, and Harold caught up with them just as they got to the door.
Gil unlocked the doors and Billy backed the trailer up to the door while Gil went to get the MT-100 forklift. Taking the cutter off the trailer, Gil slowly backed the forklift through the tunnel and into the Chamber, only turning the load around when he got to the entrance to the other chamber. Gil got off the forklift and went in with Harold to select a location to start cutting. Harold suddenly stopped and held his hand up to the wall. Moving his hand around, he licked his palm and continued to slowly move his palm around. Taking out a flashlight, he closely examined the rock wall then turned the flashlight at an angle to the wall.
"There is a ½ inch crack here that the air is rushing through. I'd begin cutting here. The wall might be thinner or there could be a partial tunnel you'll be able to open up with less effort. I'll run the Ground Penetrating Radar. It will only show us anything up to ten feet, but we can target the open space and cracks with the laser. It will be easier to cut that way.
Gil thought about the layout of the ridge and there was a huge thicket just on the other side of the ridge, close to here, that this might open out to.
They set the cutter up in position and ran the power cable from the generator. Brad fueled the water pump and had everything ready. They would begin the training in the morning while Steve started on the surveillance system.
The women had prepared chicken fried steak with all the fixings. Four well satisfied men went on the deck to digest their meal.
"You have a nice place here." Harold said.
"Why did you choose this area, Gil?" Steve asked.
"Well, the land came with a trust from my Grandfather, but I wanted a quiet place to settle down, stay away from the idiots and be prepared for when the economy collapses. Why did you choose your place, Steve?"
"Pretty much the same reasons, except I had to buy my land. I need to develop it a little more. I like the idea of the greenhouse and being able to grow your own food. I have room to expand. I guess I'll be giving Clarksville Helicopter a lot more business. I'll be calling on you, Gil, for advice from time to time."
"I'll gladly help."
Didn't you tell me one time you were part Native American or something?" Steve asked.
"I am ¼ Native American. My grandfather, on my mother's side, was full-blooded Cherokee."
Brad grinned. "And all this time I thought you were Black Irish."
"I guess that too. But I feel these hills and ridges. I feel close to them."
"Well, I need to get to bed. I've got some cable pulling to do tomorrow." Steve said.
"Take one of the Gators down. Breakfast is at 7:00."
Steve and Harold got up and drove the Gator down to Brad's trailer.
"You going to be all right tonight, Brad?"
Brad grinned. "I'm going to be more than fine. Mollie wrapped me up two eggs, a couple of slices of bread and big slice of country ham. I won't be down for breakfast."
Grace walked out on the deck with Billy.
"Gil, Billy has shown me his homeschooling work and he's just about finished. He wants to help ya'll tomorrow."
Gil looked up at Billy. "Do you want to help Steve set up the video system?"
"Yes Sir. I'll help him."
"Okay, then that's what you'll be doing."
"Dad, can I stay up at the Chamber tonight in my bedroom?"
Gil looked at Brad nodding.
"Okay, but Brad is taking up his own food for breakfast in the morning."
"Mollie wrapped me a package too."
Gil couldn't help but grin. "Okay then. Be ready to work hard tomorrow."
"Yes Sir!" Billy said, running inside.
Brad chuckled. "If all the young people in this country were like him, I'd have a lot more hope."
"Yeah, most are blinded by too much electronic crap. He has a phone, but he makes phone calls and doesn't use it to browse the internet or play games. He uses the radio more. He'd rather be shooting on the range than staring at a 3" screen."
By 10:00, they all decided to turn in. Tomorrow was going to be busy. Gil sat on the deck as he watched Brad don a pair of NVGs before he and Billy headed up the ridge in the Gator.
Billy's eyes snapped open when his alarm went off at 5:30 in the morning. He quickly dressed, turned on the lights and went to light the cookstove. As he got the fire going, Brad came down the stairs from his room.
"Did you put on coffee yet?" Brad asked.
"Just getting ready to." Billy said, filling the coffee pot with water and filling the basket to the mark with coffee."
Brad took down the big frypan and set it on the stovetop.
"You want scrambled or over?"
"Scrambled is good for me." Billy said.
The pan was soon hot and Brad threw the slices of ham in and they were soon sizzling. Brad flipped them over and beat the eggs in a bowl. When the coffee perked, Billy poured a cup for both of them, adding creamer and sugar to his. Billy took out another frying pan, got it hot, and toasted the buttered bread in the pan. Brad took the ham out and placed it on enamel plates Billy gotten out and poured the eggs into the frypan. A few stirs and the eggs were ready. Billy took the toast out of the pan and divided the slices between the plates. Going to the fridge, Billy retrieved a jar of strawberry preserves and eating utensils from a drawer. They both took seats at the dining table and enjoyed their breakfast.
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