Christmas list for the shop:
Safety
Easy Pieces
I admit that the sort of non complex carving that happens when I carve a small bowl is pretty alluring. No antsy detail. No pattern that needs to be followed. Just follow the will of the wood.
Whack!
You can't carve without removing wood. And removing wood can be as delicate a process as lightly slipping the gouge through the wood or propelling it forcefully. Apply too much force in the wrong situation, and you have lovely kindling.
New and Old
We can easily get lost in the weeds talking about tradition in crafts.
New York Pilot Boat 5
This chest was not in stock long enough for me to do a proper set of photos. It sold at it's first appearance at the Maine Boatbuilder's Show to a pair of Boston Harbor pilots who were going to give it as a retirement gift to a colleague.
Wood
As consumers, there is much that you don't know about your favorite woods.
Favorites
It sails on my wall with a cherry ocean and sky heading east from Japan or China towards Los Angelos. I think my father is pleased that his ship is restored to an essential place in our lives, through the unexpected kindness of a fellow seaman.
R.M.S. Servia – 1881
I've been interested in steam/sail transition vessels for years. Ships with steam Auxillary and later sail auxiliary revolutionized travel at sea. Oceanic travel was no longer at the mercy of the winds.
Eagle Eyes
While teaching, I always like to decorate the workshop with carving examples for students to use as a reference. Week-long excursions to teach away from home mean emptying the house of many of my carvings. But samples in three dimensions often are better than pictures or demonstration, and the extra work was worth it.
The Shop
A twelve-step program for compulsive tool buyers might help. But I have a thing about being away from my tools for meetings. Just taking the time to write this keeps me away from browsing the Lee Valley site, not to mention Rockler, Woodcraft, and Highland Woodworking.
Just Right
A shop with all the tools neatly racked, and no chips are like a clean desk—a sign of a sick mind.
Free
The old saying goes that free advice is worth what you pay for it.
Twentyone
The problem with imagination is that it's boundless. On the wall is a poster telling you that you can do it if you can imagine it. Don't take it too literally.
Wishes
Listen, candy is sweet, but you can't make a steady diet of it.
Fearsome
"Glory is fleeting. But obscurity is forever."
Pond Life – June 2020
I needed a break from writing, So here is a short summer time video. I hope it helps put you in a relaxed mood
Tiger, Tiger!
Some people never learn.
True Places
"Queequeg was a native of Kokovoko, an island far away to the West and South. It is not down in any map; true places never are." Herman Melville
Welcome Mat
the Teahead of the August Moon- thought a poet and psychic would be an exciting addition to our menagerie of odd bits and pieces.
Tip of the Iceberg
I like to believe that unlike the later hippie phenomena, Folkies were diverse as a group.
Boxes and Spills
An old saying says, "Keep your eye on the donut, not on the hole." Well, this time, I was deep into hole territory. A simple build turned major construction.
Be Thankful For Friends
Be thankful for your friends.
On The Road In The 1960’s – a travelers guide
There was no doubt. It was a piggish indulgence. We sat, each of us holding a pint of ice cream and a jelly jar of maple syrup. Said Bill, " …and as Saint Augustine said…it was wicked, but I loved it." I just nodded my palate and brain, too frozen to speak in return.
Playtime
If your play is your business, you have to take care that the fun remains in the mix - or you might find yourself doing something you hate.
Books For January
The dead zone of winter, that's what I term the first six weeks of the new year. It's too snowy, too dark, too wet, and absolutely too cold for many of the activities I enjoy.
Anticipation
I couldn't wait any longer.
Misspent
I have not always been a paragon of good taste, sensibilities, or behavior. Emphasize behavior, please. You could have described me as a cad, inappropriate, and always a sinner. I understood the feelings of Saint Augustine when he stated that "…it was wicked, but I loved it."
Folly
Folly has gotten a bum rap. I mean, take a look at all the advice people get about the joyful misadventures of youth, "that was just folly; you should have known better."
Diatribe
It's important to know when to lie low. For example, not engage in an argument. Actually, I guess it's not even an argument -if you don't listen to the other side.
The Rainy Day By Season
A Rainy day takes on different meanings depending on the time of the year:
The Cave
The sorting facility I worked in was barely heated and poorly lit.
A Winter Evening
Mixed precipitation in coastal New England means that the rain changes from rain to freezing rain to snow and back again. Oh, Joy!
Specialty work
I have a protocol for handling people with outrageous projects and complex designs. It's all cash upfront, paid design time at a high rate, and all change orders in writing. It wasn't that I was out to fleece my customers; it was to render moot speculative projects that would never go anywhere.
The Winter Garden
Last evening a friend sent me a message, "saving some of those tomato seeds for you." My mind rushed ahead to the beginning of March. Flats of seedlings under lights in the greenhouse and watching the garden beds reappear as the snow melts
Louis N. Carreras, Woodcarver 
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