With access to tools and materials from town, I am finding better use for my crafting. I frequently drift through the commercial district studying goods for sale. The commercial side of this world seems quite developed. There is no patent system here, so everyone copies everyone. What really distinguishes wares is the skill level of the craftsman. As I study the top end bows on sale, I realize I can easy match the quality.

As I start mass producing bows for sale, I also start working on a new crossbow for Kira. I am also laying out plans for a buried septic tank and a water tower, both at the south end of the farm house. As I finish my first batch of bows I ask Lawra to join me on a trip to town. I need her purchase and sales skills.

With Lawra's skill I get a good price for an anvil. It is the one important think missing in my forge. The eastern most part of the workshop was originally set up for forging, but no one would leave the anvil laying about, as it can be an expensive piece of equipment. I also get some lime to make concrete. As we finish our purchases, I hand Lawra five unstrung bows and their strings.

"These should be of equal if not better standard than any you find in the market. I want you to try and sell them for the best possible price." Lawra looks thrilled by the assignment. "Don't stay out too late." My last comment is meant to be a bit cheeky, but Lawra barely notices.

Later in the afternoon I approach Kira with my half finished crossbow. "Please hold this. Put the stock against your shoulder and your left hand on this sliding lever." As she takes a typical rifle stance, from my perspective anyway, I give her a final instruction. "Now push the lever as far forward as you can. When you hit the end slowly return it to its original position." She seems to struggle with the spring I have added to oppose the sliding lever.

Shortly afterwards I have replace the spring with a lighter pressured spring. She seems to be able to handle this one fine. The idea of the spring is to add the force of the outward push to the inward pull by using the spring. This should help spread out the force needed to reload the crossbow with the pump action. The spring is my own invention, but the concept is the same as any pump action shotgun.

As I lay the finishing touches to the crossbow, I hand it to Kira for testing. She will likely need to train the muscles needed for the pump action, but even now, she can easily reload almost as swiftly as I can draw my bow. The crossbow won't have the range of my bow, but it will be a lot easier to use. For short to medium action it should be deadly. Before dusk Kira is able to put multiple arrows in the targeted tree within a few seconds. All she needs to train is her strength endurance.

Before dusk Lawra also comes back from the market. She managed to sell all five bows. Most went for more or less the same as the best bows in the market, but a couple were actually sold at a premium, as the new owners recognized their worth. I was wondering how she would do. It is not like we have any previous market exposure, but Lawra seems to have leveraged both her own and my hunter guild membership to raise her credibility. She suggests setting up a stall next, now that the first sales have been done.

My next project is not so glamorous. The next day I keep busy digging a deep hole for the septic tank. Using the lime I bought I make concrete using the instructions given by the seller, the tank starts taking shape in the hole I have dug. To do so I have built wooden molds, while most parts are made in the hole, the lid is made above ground pulled onto place. The lid is sealed to only allow one entrance to the tank.

At this point I don't know what to do, as I don't know how to make the ceramic used for toilets. Should I use clay, metal, concrete, wood? Undecided I start looking at the foundation for the water tower. Since I already have a hole with a tank it in, I set up the foundation for the water tower around the tank in the hole, and fill up the hole with gravel and dirt.

I spent the next couple of days experimenting with solutions for the toilet, until I learned the secret of the glazing from a market stall in town. It should have been so obvious. I want a toilet that is hard and smooth. With the right glazing I can just make it out of clay. I get some tips on how to strengthen the clay as well. For the tips I buy all the ingredients I needs from the stall.

With the clay toilet installed, I make the required clay pipes and water lock. All I need is the tank to create the water flushing. For piping, I try to avoid metal pipes as these are expensive and may be hard to fit. Instead I find something resembling a rubber hose at the market. I asked the stall vendor what it was made of. "It is a large worm that is used to disposed of garbage and farmed for its skin. The skin is treated to make it shrink until it you get the texture you are holding. It is very solid, waterproof and easy to clean."

Equipped with worm skins I start working on the water tower. Worm skins will help distribute the water to my new flushing toilet and the future bathroom. With the water tower complete I fill it up with water from my storage. I use worm skins to connect water to the kitchen and the unfinished bathroom. The taps still need some work.

Finally, I introduce the girls to this worlds first flushing toilet. "Have you really moved the latrine into the house rather than keep it in the outhouse?" Lynne asks the obvious question for someone who has never seen the effect of a water lock. "If this stinks as much as the outhouse, let me know, because it will need fixing." Over the next few days the girls seemed to appreciate the water flushing toilet as much as I do, but I was surprised they didn't like it more. My modern rear-end must be spoiled.