therapy

 

Seriously! How am I to write about anything but rage?

450,000 Americans dead, a federal government that is only just now getting on the right page,  I'm on 1/4 income and enduring on-line kindergarten at least three days a week. I'm trying to do whatever work I can at home in the midst and I have no creative thoughts whatsoever. 

But I was busy. 

47 weeks 

that's how long it's been since we shut down CLE

I finished the functional part of the bed, not the drawers yet, gonna have to wait till lumber prices return to normal

I envisioned and created a bed stand for my daughter

and I haven't found even the tiniest inclination to write it

I took great and comprehensive photos of the entire process, well lit, nicely composed, able to be described by a single word

and totally neglected my poor readers (all three of you)

It was truly liberating to design and build a piece in less than two months. 

so following that revelation I'm embarking on a whole new project, twin pieces in two completely divergent species, pieces that can be produced in a relatively short period of time and can be made in duplicate.

I'll try really hard to keep you updated.

seclusion

Three weeks in 21st century America is an immensity of time

We went from festering blind consumerism, to quiet personal introspection

Just like that

Stadiums and churches and shopping malls are empty

and parks are at capacity

I haven't posted because prior to this I've been busy, buying from and selling to the faceless hoards, laboring away so someone else can turn a profit

all the while silently doing my own bidding, in my spare time, for my own need

Here it is, the fruit of my labor

I know I tease as you read

but this is what it is for me

snapshots

moments of clarity and reality

triumphs

and setbacks

But then the last three weeks I've had the chance to really work

and to spend time with those two people I cherish

to create

I have never put so many parts into a finished product

so many surfaces

so much joinery

so many decisions

revisions

complications

it's been a truly enlightening ride

a chance to grow as an artist

parent

and husband

and here it is, no glamour shots
no lovely blank backdrops and proper lighting, or new comforter (I know it clashes horribly but shopping right now is a bit complicated)

but it ain't done yet

there's a whole inner structure to create

a skeletal framework, a dresser without sides

six drawers and their lattice of runners and supports

stay tuned, I'm designing as I go

disclaimer: the work you see is from the last five months, the writing refers to the time frame mentioned, sorry for the incongruity but I couldn't stop the story

absence

oh yeah, the blog
last post; January
oops
kinda forgot about that

I mean, I didn't really
I just found respite in a different form
you know the one
snap a photo

add a title
check the thesaurus
post it

easy peasy
its addictively simple interface prevailed

and then again there hasn't been anything much to post
I felt no need to tire you with the various views of the same joint being made

endlessly

and how do I write about finishing
slap that shit on
wipe it off
do it again

yeaah

and then it hit me

I'm out of practice

all these skills I've tried to exhibit here require practice

woodworking
writing
photography

and when one lapses it becomes painfully obvious

and no I haven't blogged in a while

the pressure to do so can overwhelm all on its own

the reader might forget what fun it is sorting images
compiling a compelling storyline
editing (ick)

or we could just get back to woodworking

and forget to take pictures because the process of woodworking is overwhelming in itself

I recently had four, yes four full days to work

and I forgot how hand tools really can be faster than power tools at certain tasks

removing wind and bow from big timbers for one

sure planing the other side parallel takes a bit more time than with machines
but it is so much more satisfying to see that sliver fall off the edge when it's perfect

I could breeze through a series of mortice and tenons
with both the pigsticker and the brace
and knock out a few lapped dovetails, everything tight

 If my life ever returns to close to normal maybe I'll get back to writing stories
and being creative in my blog structure
but I gotta say, it does feel good to just get this one out there

thanks for watching