Over night, I thought of a plan for an improved safety system. We needed a rope all the way around the cupola like a necktie that I could clip on to but would allow me to move freely around the outside. Our neighbours, Cecil and Dorothy gave me a thick rope, but I still needed a harness.
Our friend Wayne found me a new bolt for the ladder. That repair was put on the list of to-dos for the next visit.
Maxine picked up most of what we needed, but wasn't able to get the aluminum strips required to hold a new window pane in place. The original aluminum strips corroded badly from the never ending salt in the air so weren't a good design anyway. I had to dream up a better way.
Frank, who volunteers on many community initiatives recalled using plexiglass to cover a couple of church windows. Ten minutes later, we found the left over material in the basement and it was exactly the size we needed. A quick check with the Church and voila, we had the plexiglass I needed to cut a new pane. We were on a roll so I mentioned to Frank that I needed a safety harness, and he said " the Town has one, check there". I beat it for the Town office but they were closed for the weekend. Without any spare time on my side, I couldn't afford to lose the weekend waiting on a harness.
On Saturday, Tammy, the Town's Administrator knew we were leaving for Ontario soon and showed up to bid us farewell. I got up the nerve to ask about a harness. It was her day off, and I hated to ask. Her eyes sparkled, and she said she'd give Alvin a call. Within 15 minutes or so, Alvin drove into the yard, smiling as usual, and handed me a brand new safety harness.
The plan was starting to come together. If only I had a few aluminum strips or could come up with something else to hold the window pane in place. Whatever it was, it had to be at hand, and would have to withstand everything the north Atlantic could throw at it. The problem was frustrating me, but I felt honoured to be helping, and was impressed with the community support.
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