Weekly Editorial
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Watch a Good Work
At an unholy hour Thursday morning, I will begin a pilgrimage to Chicago. The reason? Yours truly, along with Woodworker’s Journal field editor Chris Marshall and regular contributor George Vondriska, will be building a guitar this weekend, live on the Craftsman Experience.
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Weather or Not
Last week, those of us here on the tundra were treated to temperatures as high as 50 degrees Fahrenheit – for several days in a row. I saw fellow Minnesotans wearing shorts under their parkas, and my black and white spotted pointer became mostly brown from the mud puddles that she joyfully played in. Smiles were everywhere, and you could almost hear the collective snap, crackle and pop of winter-jaws unclenching and permanently hunched shoulders relaxing.
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Quality Time in the Shop
“Hey, Rob, Chad is in Cub Scouts and he is working on his Pinewood Derby® entry, and I was wondering if we could come over and make use of your shop to get it started?” was the voicemail message on my cell phone one Saturday morning.
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Next Question!
Last time out, I asked a question regarding which room of your house has received the most attention from your woodworking efforts. Your willing and numerous responses were, once again, interesting — and all over the map (or the house, to be more accurate). Bedroom to laundry room, basement to attic — no place is safe from your efforts. I was truly impressed with the variety of your home product production. And, as promised, you can read more about what your partners in crime are doing in our Feedback department.
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Which Room Wins?
Do you remember the old poster that said, “Sometimes I sits and thinks, and sometimes I just sits”? Well, on those occasions when I sit and actually think, questions often come to mind, questions that I think you can answer for me. Recently, the query that came to mind was one of distribution. When I’ve polled woodworkers in the past, it was clear that a large percentage of their woodworking projects were designed to improve their home. (I know that this is certainly true of me.) What sparked my curiosity this time around was this: which room of my home have I made the most stuff for?
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Snowbound Bonanza
I am well aware that in many parts of the country the words “snow” and “shovel” are not joined together as a single noun. Even so, this year, those of us living above the Mason Dixon Line have experienced what might be termed a “bountiful supply” of the white stuff. As my father would have described the situation, the snow is “fanny-high on a tall Lutheran.”
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A Decade of Internet Woodworking Fun
Ten years ago, in April 2000, we emailed our first issue of the Woodworker’s Journal eZine. We sent it out to just under 30,000 woodworkers – whose email addresses we had to scrounge, borrow and beg. Now, there are around 250,000 of you, and for that we are very thankful.
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What Can You Get For A Buck?
How about hours of pleasurable workshop entertainment, or perhaps a useful homefront improvement? A piece of woodworking history? That perfect shop-made gift?
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Thank You
“A wealth of knowledge … something for everyone with an interest in woodworking!” Those were just some of the comments that were used to describe this eZine as we were awarded the Gold Award from the Minnesota Magazine & Publishing Association.
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The Call of the Wild
I admit it. I am of two minds – OK, my kids might say that is an understatement — but when it comes to my wood preference, the statement is dead-on. On one hand, straight quartersawn grain is very pleasing to me. I like it in spruce, white oak, red oak, mahogany … you get the drift. I have built tons of projects with quartersawn lumber.
