I spent most of the day Sunday with about a dozen other volunteers, trying to get the camp showers working.
I don't know what all took place Saturday, so somebody else can tell that story. It looked like to me that Bob Cowell and Rick Corbell had done a ton of work. But other cavers chipped in: Don Arburn, Graham Schindel, Geary Schindel, and Bob's daughter, and Joe Mitchell. I am sure I am leaving somebody off. Also, there were several cavers there offering support: Rod Goke, Linda Palit, Evelyn Mitchell and friend Melanie ?, and Jon Cradit, and son, and George Veni. It was hot. But there was a nice breeze. There was a large metal framed-tarp set up over the shower structure, that provided some relief from the heat, but it blew away while everybody was gone to lunch. It was also very sunny, so sunglasses and a good hat, and sunburn lotion were a necessity. The structure is a wooden platform about 6 inches off the ground with 4 shower stalls and a small dressing area. It is intended for campers at the loud campground to use, so that they don't have to go across campus to the showers in the gym. There was some debate about the need for hot water. In my opinion, hot water is not a priority in 100 degree weather. However, it is nice to be able to set the temperature to what ever pleases you. It looked like to me that the primary problem at the moment is supplying a water line to the building. I presume Bob has this figured out, but it looks like it may involve some hard work on Thursday and Friday. There is also some plumbing work left to be done on the shower heads and the valves, but that should not be too difficult if some volunteers show up, as they already have an example to go by. Personally, I think the showers need a decorator with a feminine touch. Maybe some rubber shower mats from Bed, Bath & Beyond. Or maybe some towel racks. There are 2 sinks outside for brushing your teeth, and washing your face and hands. I think most of the carpentry work has been completed. It is not going to make the cover of Home and Garden, but it should last 10 days or so. It is designed to be disassembled easy, so that there is not so much work for the few volunteers that will show up after ICS. I recommend putting up an ad in a local laundry-mat for someone to haul off the building for free. Another project that took place was making some makeshift water faucets for the loud campground. I can't say that anybody had fun today. But some new friends were made, and maybe some bonds that will promote future caving opportunities. There were also some other volunteers on campus, working on fencing. I think there was some issue with that. I will let them tell the story. But it looks like a lot of fence work is going to have to get done quickly this weekend. Did I leave off anything important ? David Locklear --------------------------------------------------------------------- Visit our website: http://texascavers.com To unsubscribe, e-mail: texascavers-unsubscr...@texascavers.com For additional commands, e-mail: texascavers-h...@texascavers.com
