Woodworkers, like children in pre-school

[Tom]

I couldn't sleep this morning and was up early IM'ing with Dang and Fla._Deadheader.  It was almost 8:00 before I realized I hadn't had my beginning injections of Caffeine, so, I left the computer and went to the kitchen.  From the kitchen, with my freshly brewed mug of Coffee, I found myself in the TV room, a place I seldom frequent.  This morning is Saturday though.  At 10:00 Roy Underhill's Woodwright's Shop comes on and if I can remember it, will tear down walls to watch.

Flipping through channels to keep myself busy, I watched an archaeologist search for Omhotep's tomb and the Fox and friends chat endlessly while they tried Raman noodles on the street in front of the studio.  Somebody was talking about Sesame' street on an upper channel and I realized it was time.  I changed to my PBS station at the same time as my wife walked in with a bowl of soft-boiled eggs and a plate of bacon and toast.  This is turning out to be a great morning.

Well Roy came on and explained that we were going to be in a shop in the boundary waters of Minnesota.  He introduced me to Mark Hansen and explained that Mark made skis.  Mark is a Northern version of Roy.  He uses old hand tools and actually looks at the grain of the wood rather than treating it as a piece of plastic.

Roy was really excited about learning about the skis.  He was jabbering and picking stuff up and asking questions, pushing the show on so fast that I hardly had time to take a bite of breakfast for fear of missing something.  Mark was all caught up in the excitement too.  He was really proud to have someone interested in his shop and breezed right through the warping of skis on a jig and the fine tuning of the bottom.  No Fancy buzz-words here, just plain old talk, but, it was coming 90 miles per hour.

It seemed that Roy's volunteering to put a ski on and Mark's exuberance in explaining how to tie it on would  be the end of the show.  But, no, they went to the other side of the shop and, with mouths running like rapids in a swollen river, showed off 3 or 4 toboggans.  Then they stepped to the middle of the shop and began making a pram, a little boat used by Norwegians to carry themselves, or even a cow, to the other side of a river.

The conversation was a series of flurries from, first, one side and then the other, many times both together.  I was so caught up with their excitement that I hated to see the show end.  These were two adults, so enamored with there jobs that they wanted the whole world to be a part of it. 

I've been like that before, with my sawing.   It's a good feeling to see others excited by their field.  This was an interesting show. I enjoyed seeing skis made.  But, the fresh cup of coffee did nothing with its caffeine to make me want to take on the world like the childhood-like exuberance of these two craftsman did.  I've just got to get out there and do "something" today.

[Buzz-sawyer]

I believe this is one of the reasons I love this forum so much .....I catch the excitement you guys share and it fires me up ALL THE MORE!

[Frank_Pender]

You are so correct, Buss.   I just came in from the mill and thought I would check in again to see what was new.   Nothing, but EXCITEMENT. 8)


   Yes, Tom, sawing is like that show.  Each log and each board bring a level of fluids through the blood stream that cause even more to flow. 
;D

    Then it is the joy on someones face when they see the lumber and you imagine what their project will look like upon completion. 8)

[Ironwood]

Tom,

  Yeah I am in preschool too. Woke up at 3 am oout in the shop by four, worked all day until 5;30 pm. Big show at the Adirondack museum coming in two weeks and it's by invation only and I want to have a good showing. BUT, I am building some way cool coffee tables from a curled walnut crotch about 20" at the small end and 48 at the other. STEEL custom tube legs cut from 1/8 plate custom bent on my pinch rolls, tapered on three axis and then all welded and ground SMOOOOOTH. I have been waitiing about a year and a half to use these babies. I call the look, "sophisticated primitive" Natural bark edge drop dead top and totally contemporary base in flat black. Envision one of those custom chopper programs, but for your home. God I am soooo blessed to be able to do what I love. Count all my blessing everyday, family, profession, health. Life is good.

   I love Roy's flesh be damned approach, although he makes me nervous. Recently filmed something here at my shop for a cable channel and I often thought of Roy's banter and pace, he must wear out the film crew!!!!

                               REID

[CHARLIE]

Tom, that school is located in Grand Marais, Minnesota which is located on the north shore of Lake Superior about a 45 minute drive to the Canadian border.  Timber_Framer lives in Grand Marais. Since about 1991, I used to meet cousin John at the Pincushion B & B for a week of cross country skiing every January...until I wrecked my shoulders.  I still go there to meet John but don't ski anymore.  I sell some of my woodturnings at the Lake Superior Trading Post located right on the bay.  Over the years, we've met some mighty fine people there and have made some good friends.  If you go to Grand Marais in January, you'll usually just find the locals there and DanG few Tourist.  Great pizza at Sven and Olie's and you ain't had a pizza until you've had one of their Uff Da Za pizzas and a pitcher of suds from their Pickle Herring Lounge.
There are some people living in Grand Marais that have gone there to get away from the hustle and bustle of modern life. They live in small cabins without running water or electricity. They use kerosene lamps and wood stoves and get their water from the creek and the spring. That has to be tough in the winter.  Yep, that school is in Grand Marais, a town that is very special to me.  A few years back a semi-truck, probably a log truck, lost his brakes coming down the Gunflint trail, He couldn't stop and crashed through the Angry Trout restaurant and I believe hit some of the Northwood Schools building and went flying out onto the pier. I don't think he went into the water. I bet he was wide eyed too.  Anyway, Grand Marais changed the way the Gunflint Trail comes into town now so that won't happen again.  

[SwampDonkey]

Gee that Roy's a busy lad. I also watched him make carvings this week. Nail embedded in wood (how did he get that in there??), ball inside a cage, wooden chain links, spiral helix screw, hinged book display, nut cracker (from hickory). He was using basswood to carve most items. Get out the wood carving tools. ;D