It's time to glue the bow seat into the hull, and that means it's my last chance to try to approximate the custom of placing a coin beneath a stepped mast. The closest I can come, at this point, is to attach said coin, somehow, to the mast support which will forever hide underneath the bow seat.
Not so hard to do, really. Just need a coin. So Sooz and I gathered coins from around the house and began to inspect them, looking for something inspirational.
The best we came up with is this 1953 "wheat penny," so named for the wheat thingies seen below on either side of the abundantly clear coin denomination.
The mint year is meaningful only in the sense that it's the same year I was minted (thanks, Mom).
As it happens, this particular coin was minted in San Francisco, where I spent many of my salad years, whatever they are.
I used my Japanese-style pull saw (purchased from Home Depot for a song) to make little slit to hold the penny. I'll glue it in when I mix up a batch of epoxy to install the seat that will hide it forever. Well, I hope forever. If not forever then as long as the forward portion of the boat lasts.
Note: according to my careful online research, this penny is currently worth THREE CENTS. Assuming I acquired this penny a year ago, I have made a 300 PERCENT ANNUALIZED RATE of RETURN. Who said I couldn't invest well?
