- One of the smoothest key changes I’ve ever heard.
- Canst thou shred on a mandolin? Yea, verily.
I’ve thought about this video shared by Denny several times over the past couple of days. Our cultural expectations of what constitutes a good life can blind us to the possibilities found by others. I’m trying–haltingly and inconsistently, to be sure–to extricate myself from that worldview.
The most trustworthy people in the world are those who have been to the underworld. Those who’ve been torn open, rearranged, and made new by suffering. Myths are riddled with descents into the underworld wherein the hero confronts the darkness of the shadowy depths and reemerges with gifts and lessons. This is a kind of wisdom that is not on offer in the clouds or on earth. It can only be found below.
As of yesterday, I finished my two big summer projects: refinish my in-laws’ dining set and build a cabinet for a friend. Today I cleaned and organized the garage, which was getting quite out of hand while I was working on those projects.
My remaining to-do list:
- Repair and refinish a cedar chest
- Repair and refinish two antique chairs
- Refinish one remaining chair for it in-laws
- Get a few tools acquired over the past year into working order
Plans for next projects:
- A six board chest using Rex Krueger’s design
- I’d like to make several dovetail boxes, and maybe give one away as a Christmas present if I get the hang of it in time.
- Experiment with carving designs into whatever I’m building.
A few months ago, a very generous friend decided to give me some of his grandfather’s tools: a bench grinder, a small drill press, and a benchtop disc sander.
All he asked in return was an open-front, mobile cabinet that he could use in his garage and for cookouts. He already had a countertop. So I built it of birch plywood and added four lockable wheels and adjustable shelves.
I also surprised him with a memorial to his grandfather burned inside the cabinet.
I experimented with burning through the paint on some scrap and it looked okay but it also had a decent chance of going wrong. I decided to leave it unpainted and then finished the spot with some spray polyurethane for protection.
Here it is in its new home
Hanging cayennes are so pretty. And that’s red switchgrass to the left.
I like the “On this Day” feature here at micro.blog. Today it brought up a thought experiment about consciousness from last year. Still seems like an interesting possibility to me, combining something like panpsychism with something like reincarnation.
People ought to be warned about middle age. My daughter is 18 and needs help dealing with increasingly adult situations. My mom is 78 and is able to handle very little by herself anymore. Increasing pressure and responsibilities at work. I know it happens to everyone. Nevertheless, it’s a lot!
That’s some big tomatoes! They’re an heirloom variety; unfortunately the person we got them from couldn’t remember the name. My tomato-loving wife likes them, though, so that’s all that matters.
My newsletter subscriptions are shifting in the right direction: less cultural criticism, more woodworking.