Riding the bus

Lost Friends,

Not really lost just kind of misplaced. I have had lots of friends come and go in my lifetime. When I was young my Dad was in the Navy so we moved around a bit. This was hard on a young kid having to move away from a best friend. The upside of this learning to make new friends. This is a good life skill to have. It seems these days I have a lot of friends that I don't get to see very often. So when I run into old friends I am happy to see them. We have a few minutes to catch up on how we are each doing, ask about some other people and then we each go our separate ways.

Usually I make friends based on the activity I am doing. These shared experiences bring people together. That and the time spent in that activity. If there is some risk involved the experience is even stronger. I raced sailboats for many years. I met many people and counted many of them as friends. I have tons of stories about people, weather conditions and locations we visited. Even when sailing my boat singlehanded I would talk to other people out on the water, in the bar afterwards or while helping each other with our boats. All my favorite memories on the water involve people. I met my wife in one of my sailing classes. I have done Jiu-Jitsu, woodturning, running and now triathlon.

This morning I was thinking about someone I haven't seen in a while. We are both busy with our families and our training. I finished swimming and ran into another old friend from my sailing days, we talked for a few minutes and then went on our separate ways. I have always said life is a like a bus ride. Sometimes people get on and ride for a while and become friends, sometimes your friends get off only to get back on later. So if any of my friends are reading this the bus is only a short ways from the next stop.

Looking for wood

So as a woodturner you are out driving around and see a pile of wood on the side of the road. First thing I do is look to see if it is large enough in diameter. I like it to be around 12 inches in diameter, then I look to see what kind of wood it might be. If it is pine or oak than I keep on driving. The other thing I am looking for is access. if it is on a busy street I will probably pass on it. I like it to be in a neighborhood where I can just stop and load some up in the back of my car. Many times I will be at home and will hear a chainsaw running in the neighborhood and will get on my bike and go ride around looking for whoever is cutting something down. I will then see what kind of tree they are removing. Most people will be happy to cut some of the wood however you want. They are happy to get rid of some of it. Plus they don't have to move it. I like knowing where the wood came from and the fact that I can make something either useful or pleasant to look at. Also like the fact that I am keeping something from the landfill. So next time you see me looking at a pile of wood on the side of the road cut me a bit of a break. I am thinking about my next project.

Knowing when to Quit

Sometimes knowing when to quit is a hard thing to figure out. Other times you know before hand when it is time. I am working on a hollow vessel that I started a while ago. I worked on it for several hours and then put it away for about a year or 2 ago. I finally got it out and started working on it again yesterday. I have no idea where I was going with it since I haven't thought about it in a while. I am trying to decide how far to go with it. I am committed to opening up the slots now that I have started cutting them I drew pencil lines on yesterday and figured I would think about the piece overnight and see if I still wanted to go that far with the carving. This morning I am still liking the idea. I am now trying to decide if I should keep the hard edges or go for a more rounded look. Many times when I go out to make a piece I have a pretty clear picture in my mind of what I want to make. This really helps me know when to stop. With a project like this I have no clear vision, I am just along for the ride. Hopefully I will know when I am done...

Saturday I did a 26.2 mile training run. It took a really long time. I was having a rough day. They say you have good days and bad days. I was determined not to quit no matter how long it took me. It took about 1 hour longer then I thought it would take. I even turned down 2 rides. My legs were very sore when I finished but I finished and was very happy that I stuck it out. The people I usually train with were long finished but I got the same satisfaction they did for finishing.

http://photos.jacksonville.com/mycapture/enlarge.asp?image=27660007&event=930362&CategoryID=36903

I even look pretty good in the picture.

Having a clear goal helps you decide when you are done. Now I am going out to my studio to finish the Walnut Vessel.

Slow week training busy week turning

So I was pretty busy with my wood turning this week. I finished this bowl. It started out as a regular bowl, I then cut out all the leaves and then did some wood burning and finally airbrushed the color onto the leaves. I used transparent paints because I like to be able to see the wood grain in my finished pieces. I also mad a giant bobbin for a customer to wrap copper tubing around. Thursday evening I taught a pen turning class at Woodcraft. Today I started another leaf bowl. This is a technique I am definitely going to explore some more. I have several more themes I want to bring to life.

My training is coming along. I didn't get much running in this week but I am ok with that. I went swimming twice and Spinning once and I am going again in the morning. This morning I got in a 7 mile run in very cold and windy conditions. After last weeks 23 mile run I wanted to take a few days off from running. The marathon in about 6 weeks away and coming up fast. I am looking forward to that. I am also looking forward to warmer weather. I like training when it is warmer. It looks like at least another week of cold weather. I will just keep training.

Sparks a Flying!

Making sparks. I had a customer bring me a bag full of old carbon steel tools he needed sharpened. Included were several scrapers. I urged him to make one of them a skew chisel. Carbon steel makes lots of sparks when you are grinding it. I had my daughter come out and take some pictures.

This is a close up of the sparks. The interesting thing is they cool off so fast they don't really hurt. If you have a steady stream like in the picture the heat builds up. Also since the tools are carbon steel you have to cool the tool frequently. Most of these tools are heat treated and the grinder can heat up the steel enough to cause you to lose the temper. You grind a bit then quench the steel in the some water.
I realized as I was typing this blog entry that I didn't have a before and after picture. Maybe next time. I was digging the pretty sparks .

Woodturning Apr29th

My latest project. This a Camphor vase that I am working on. It is about 10 inches tall and 4 inches in diameter. I am just about done working on this, it has been hollowed out and sanded. I have just started applying finish to it. I like to apply a few coats of finish to protect the piece. I still have to finish parting it off the lathe and then clean up the bottom. Then I will sand an apply several coats of finish and finally burn my name into the bottom. Other then the grain it has a knot in the side. I was happy that it stayed in I was thinking it might pop out while I was turning the inside. The oil from this wood has a really strong smell. I enjoy the smell while I am working with this wood. Plus this wood turns and sands well. The shavings from this ended up as mulch around the bushes in my front yard. It helps keep the bugs away from the bushes and we never have to buy mulch. I will post another picture of this piece when it is completely finished. Plus I will post it on my website.

Triathlon Training

I am taking a triathlon training class. Last night I went to the first meeting. It is put on by the Strider's Running Club. The class last night was very organized I was very impressed. They had all the information and had the coaches and gave a really good talk about what to expect. The meeting was held at About Bicycles in Orange park. They pulled out all the stops to make us welcome. We got our training program for April. I started my training today. I took a spinning class with Tami. Of course she was on call checking about he conflicker virus. So she was a little distracted during the training.  We get to train together a couple of times a week. So this is cool. Tomorrow is Art walk the kids and I are going to be there selling out stuff (Wood turning, Candles and Soap). So I am going to miss the first run clinic. I will be back there next week and shouldn't miss too many of the training days. I will make sure to get in some training. 

Stay tuned for more training details. The adventure continues. 

Out in my studio

Yesterday, I decided to go out and work in my studio. I selected a piece of wood from the pile. Then I proceeded to start shaping the outside of it. It is a piece of spalted Maple. The color and grain of this wood is very nice. Today I am planing on hollowing out this piece. I made quite the pile of shavings while shaping the outside of this piece and rest assured they will be put to good use. I place all my shavings under the bushes to use as mulch. I always have different colors of mulch under the bushes around the house. When I am turning a lot I will even make enough shavings for the neighbor to use for mulch around his yard. When I cut off the corners of a blank I throw them on his firewood pile and he burns that to help warm his house. Of course I make sure to check when he finds wood to see if there is anything I want to turn so it all works out for the best. He never buys wood he just finds it on the side of the road from where people put it out for yard trash. We are saving it from the land fill. I will post another picture of this piece when it is finished.

Woodturning

Today I went out in my studio and did some work after the kids finished school. I made this Camphor vase. It is about 12 inches tall and probably 5 inches in diameter. It only has one coat of finish on it so far but the piece is starting to look great. I was thinking about carving on it but I am starting to have second thoughts about that. I will have to think about it for a while. I have another vase that is a much plainer wood that I will definitely do some carving on, This one may have to wait. 

Teaching turning

Tonight I had a pen turning class at Woodcraft in Jacksonville. I ended up with 3 students. We were just getting started. I was explaining the parts of the lathe and I was about to mount the blanks on the mandrel before turning. The class went well and all the students made good pens. I do enjoy teaching, I like helping people learn new skills.

Fifty

February 19th

Tonight I taught an advanced pen turning class at Woodcraft. I really enjoy teaching there. Not only do I like teaching, but it is a nice place to teach classes. They have all the equipment needed and the classroom is nice as well. Tonight I had 3 students, all of them had previous turning experience so we were able to cover some of the stuff in detail. Everyone made some nice pens. I will post a picture of my pen tomorrow after I assemble it. I did cut some grooves into it and glued some of the colored sawdust into it. Tonight's picture was taken with my iphone. 

Forty-seven

February 16th

Tonight I went over to Dan Long's house and turned some pens for the troops. These pens are being turned and then sent to our troops serving overseas. Tonight Dan and I made 10 pens. I had a good time over at Dan's and the evening was even for a good cause. I just had the thought that the last 2 days worth of events were both helping others. (Cool) 

Thirty-nine

February 8th

Today I got to teach a bowl turning class at Woodcraft. I ended up with 5 students. I had a truck driver from Texas show up at the last minute and a Preacher from Atlanta the other 3 students were local. It was a good group. Everyone did well and all went home with bowls. Tonight after dinner Miles and I went for a walk in the neighborhood. We only did 2 miles as my leg was sore from yesterday. I have been struggling with my hamstring a bit and after running 7 miles yesterday it was a bit sore. I am trying to save myself for the race on Saturday. The kids watched Chitty Chitty bang bang tonight. I haven't seen this movie in quite a while. It is still pretty good:-)

Twenty-six

Day 26

Today I spent a lot of time in the kitchen. Cooking and cleaning and that kind of stuff. It was a red, white and blue kind of day. I home schooled the kids. Cooked meals and even went to the pen turners club meeting. They are a fairly new club and all they talk about is pen turning. I enjoyed the meeting tonight and plan on going next month as well.

Twenty-five

Day 25

Out in my workshop. Today I was able to spend several hours out in my shop. I did some pen turning and a little carving. I also put in a hanger system for my bike. The background of the picture is really busy. Everything has a place and I am able to find whatever I need. I enjoy spending time out in my shop.

Seventeen

Day 17

Bowls, Bowls & more bowls.

Today I taught a woodturning class at the Jacksonville Woodcraft store. I had seven students. They each made a bowl. Everyone made a bowl and went home happy. I love teaching and had a busy day but still had a good time. These are a few of my bowls I took to show my students. I love being able to share my  love of woodturning with others. Check out my website www.asthewoodturns.com for some more examples of my woodturning.

Thirteen

Day 13

Today I awoke to the sound of rain. Not only that it was cold outside as well. This is a picture of how we dress for the weather in Florida. I decided not to wear my flip flops and went for the keens as they keep my feet warmer, plus they do a better job of staying dry. This evening I had a class at Woodcraft on pen making. I had 6 students tonight and the class went well. Everyones pens came out good. And they all seemed to have a good time. Hopefully the weather will be better and I can get back to some training tomorrow.

Nine

Day 9

Today was the first day of the Florida Woodturning Symposium. I had 2 hands on demos today. I had to be there for my first demo at 8:30 am So I had to get a very early start. I was up a 4am and on the road by 5am. This put me there with plenty of time to get checked in and even set up before my students started arriving.  My Demos went well and every one seemed to have a good time. I am hoping to get asked back for next year.

Eight

Day 8

The project is going well so far I am 8 days into it only 357 more to go:-) I am sitting eating cereal at our breakfast bar.(Picture by Ethan) I am leading a hands on demo this weekend and today is the day I have to gather all my tools together and make sure I have everything needed for the workshops. I am doing 2 different workshops on Friday. One will be pen making and the other will be making miniature boxes. I will post some pictures of the projects this weekend. The Florida Woodturning Symposium is held each year at a Baptist retreat. It is self contained, everything is in one location. Last year to get on the internet I found a bench close to a building and was able to access the internet. I have heard they have more access this year so I am hoping I won't have to sit outside to check my email and update my blog.

Six

Day 6

Today was a good day. I got to work out in my studio. I am making tool handles in the picture. The weather continues to be nice. It gets cool at night and then warms up during the day. I actually cut the grass today. Tonight I went for a run. I went to the River walk and ran the bridges. I was able to get 5.38 miles in. I started at the School board building and ran across the Main Street bridge and then down to the Fuller Warren bridge and then back across the Acosta Bridge. The run took me 77 minutes. The best part about it was I was wearing shorts and a t-shirt. I really like running along the river in the evening. The breeze was blowing about 10 kts. It just made for a really nice evening.