All Thumbs wrote:
I need to reattach a piece of wood to a brick wall. (The piece of wood
was nailed to the wall but somehow came loose.) What is the proper way
to do it? Should I try to nail it back to the original holes or do I
need to avoid them? If the latter, do I need to drill pilot holes before
nailing? Is there a special kind of nail for this application? Thanks.

Keep in mind that you can drill out a hole in the brick or mortar just
large enough to insert a piece of wooden doll rod. The piece of doll
rod then can accept a nail or screw. When the screw or nail is
inserted, the doll rod will expand and tighten inside the drilled hole.