Thank a vet today!

Today is Veteran's Day. It's one of those holidays that never held a lot of meaning for me before. But this year it seems to be on my mind more. Maybe becasue this is the first Veteran's Day that my father -- a WWII vet -- isn't here. I feel a bit of an obligation to carry on the torch. So, consider this post my "salute" to all the veterans out there. Thank you for all you've done.

Apparently, turning trash into treasure isn't a new undertaking. My dad brought this picture frame and stand home from the service to give to my mother. I'm not sure if he made it, a buddy made it, or he bought it, but it's pretty cool. It's made from some sort of bullet casings.

Like many veterans of his generation, my dad did not talk much about his experiences during the war. It wasn't until later in life (like when my kids had to do those "interview a vet" assignments) that he began to share more. I remember him telling how every time the guys on his ship would hear "I'm Dreaming of a White Christmas" they would all start to cry. Imagine all those big, strong, brave sailors bawling at the thought of home, family, and snow.

He also said that to pass the time, the guys would make things by whatever and from whatever means they could. My dad fashioned this bracelet for my mom from some scrap of tin. I don't remember him being particularly handy, artsy, or fond of junk. But he was very capable, practical, and caring. It's hard to detect from the photo, but the center is etched like an anchor, one end has his name and the other hers, and little x's decorate the edges.

This pocket Bible was presented to my dad from his church when he left for the service. It has a metal cover with the inscription "May this keep you safe from harm". If the Bible was in your chest pocket, over your heart, it would help protect you from harm -- metal or otherwise. My hope is that we remember to continually pray for those serving to defend the freedoms we enjoy. We need to also pray for their loved ones waiting back home. And if you see a vet today or in days to come, please remember to thank them. Thanks, Dad.

Still having fun

Well, this week I finally finished the bench I had been planning to do for some time now. It's the first "big" thing I've finished since being in my new space. It feels good after moving those bed parts here and there from place to place while I relocated. There was just so much other stuff that also moved from place to place. It made the whole moving thing much more difficult and longer than I anticipated. But I hope it was all worth it and I believe it was worth it. My new place has a bathroom and I didn't realize before how much that was needed. So it had to be done if only for that. I'm excited to hold more classes -- I couldn't have done that before.

So I'm back in the saddle again and able to go crazy in my workshop.I've got more ideas than I can keep up with. Too bad I can't say the same thing about customers. The marketing end of all this is way more challenging than I would ever have imagined. But I really believe it will catch on (hopefully sooner than later) otherwise I wouldn't keep hanging in there. Besides, who doesn't love to have fun with junk?!

Here I Go!

Hope you enjoy the picture of me, because that's probably the only one you'll ever see. That being said, I feel it's my obligation to say as every blogger does "Well, here I go. I've never really blogged
before so bear with me. I hope I can come up with plenty to talk
about."
Enough cliches. And I know I'll have plenty to talk about if I simply chronicle my adventures of transforming my junk and trying to make that into a successful enterprise. I actually did
already have a blog, but apparently I didn't quite get what a blog really is and I didn't produce it correctly. After cruising through some blogs recently, I had an "aha" moment and finally grasped the concept. So I'm trying again. And since I'm updating my website and there's a link to my blog, I'd better have a blog. So without further ado, here's my blog and ....Here I Go!