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Musings in the wood shop bowls carving and the joys of working outside

Hi Everyone,

Well we had quite a rain storm pass over us last night-it rained heavily all night long. Minnesota must be the greenest place in the US at the moment.

I really enjoy working out of doors. I work almost all year around and sometimes that means it can be quite cold and uncomfortable. But at other times it means getting to work during amazing storms like the one we have going on at the moment.

Its interesting just how different the air feels and even smells during a storm. The sound of thunder sounds so much sharper outside than it does inside. Mix in the strong scent of wood and you have the most amazing work environment in world.

The animals I get to see are fun too. This year seems to be an amazing year for birds. Ive seen birds here that Ive never seen before. Early in the morning its like a chorus outside with all of them chirping and singing to one another. We have an owl and a wood pecker too.

This really beats working in a cubicle.

Ok back to work: the bowls that we made last month are ready to come out of their drying bags for inspection and final cuttings so well begin that probably later today.

And Ive been wanting to carve a spoon for the longest time. I have some arthritis in my hands and hand carving is something Ive given up. I think I may be able to get around some of the pain and stiffness by using a draw knife to do some of the rough shaping so Im going to purchase a draw knife and some bass wood (much softer than the hickory I use!) and try to make a spoon once again. Ill post pictures and discussion soon.

I will also be closing my shop for a week in July to clean out everything and to patch up the concrete floor. More about that next month.

Have a great day and if youre in Minnesota, go outside and listen to the birds and enjoy the spring showers.

VW