Eighteenth Entry: Carpentry Skill Increased By 1

I'd gotten myself a sizable pile of food and drink, but I would have to scavenge more, sooner rather than later. But now, armed with a plethora of tools, I got to work on reinforcing my stronghold.

My first though was simply to nail wooden planks across the doors, sealing it shut. But - as tempting as it was - I couldn't just seal myself in. I would probably have to scavenge several times a week, and there was only one way in or out. Instead, I started measuring out a thick piece of wood, about 6 feet in length, that could be slid into place across the doors like a bar, in case the lock should fail.

All the tools were in good shape, so cutting through the pews was relatively easy work. I was a little worried about the amount of noise I was making, and whether or not it would attract more walkers. I prayed that they would be otherwise occupied while I worked. I finished the bar in about half an hour and carried it over to the door. A pair of broad metal hooks, shaped like half-closed and upturned hands, had already been built into the door for just such a purpose. It took a bit of negotiating to get it to fit, but eventually the bar fell into place. I was confident that the door could withstand anything less than car ramming into it. And even then, it'd have to be a big car.

Satisfied with my handiwork, I sat back and cracked open a can of soda. What next? I had already decided to build a fence around the entire graveyard. The stone fence already in place was certainly sturdy enough, but it was so low that walkers could simply crawl over it. I didn't have anywhere near enough wood to build a fence that big. Not yet. But perhaps I could start building a framework for it. First of all, though, I wanted to plug the big gap in the stone fence.

I could plug it with a couple of abandoned cars to begin with, and then start on an actual, working gate of some sort. No matter what, I had to clear the street of walkers.

I sat down with pencil and paper, and started sketching designs for the fence and gate.