Y'know, I had a quiet minute just to sit and think today. And when I got back from the restroom, I had created a reallybigthought of sorts.
I mean, I live here in "Northern" California (more particularly, the BADlands of California). We've been getting some of that airborne moisture that I've seen so much of when visiting places like Corvallis and Seattle. So last night while Mrs. McGee and little Conk were out, I left the carhole doors closed while working on the Bathroom Vanity of Eternal Construction.
And so then I figgered that it would sure be nice when the days were longer and the localized atmospheric conditions less waterful, and I could open the doors or even move some of my stuff out of the carhole and into the yard. And that, of course, made me think of our own Patrick Olguin's LowCal Wood Modification Facility.
And so today as I was ruminating, or whatnot, I realized that what O'Deen needs is a nice sign. And in honor of his Sunset Magazine lifestyle, I think it should say:
...
Paddy'O Woodworking
...
(okay, not worth the buildup, but *you're* the one who read this far into a post by someone named "Buttonhole.")
Oyez! Thought you might be from McGee clan of Baton Roooooge.
Had no idea McGee's migrated that far west.
IIRC, about 1853, it was Jester McGee that tried to cross the Rockies in late fall. Jester, (maybe you knew him as "Morgan"?), ran into trouble when his Schooner threw a felly rim. Heard the tale that he survived the winter on nuts n' berries. Him being too kind-hearted to kill the mules.
Some sketchy reports of him surfacing in San Fran - working the wharfs - late 80's. Genealogy trails off after that.
No idea the McGee's made it that far.
Not the "sharpest tools in the shed", I think. [ No offense, of course! ]
Based on the general reaction I have to the stuff that leaves my shop (after having been ham-fistedly abused by my very well taken care of tools), a more appropriate shop sign would be...
Paddy's Oh.... oh... oh ohhhhhhhhhhhhh Shit!
It's a nice thing my varied, sundry, patient and faithful customers aren't nearly so critical.
Funny you should mention the outdoor shop. We're having the second installment of our bi-annual rainfail (it only rains twice a year here
- once for two weeks, and once for three weeks), and so shoptime has been precious. It did clear up this weekend, and I was immediately hard at work in the jungle shop, making mistakes as quickly as I could put plane to wood. This weekend's example was a simple speaker shelf for a friend. Out of expediency and sloth, I had the local Lowe's slice a decent piece of 3/4" oak ply into something resembling a rectangle, and I proceeded to attach some trim to it. Said attaching exercise went reasonably well, save for the oh-so-cleverly blind-nailed part, where the red oak turned black the second I attempted to glue down the little curl I'd peeled up to hide the nail. Next time I'll use super glue.
So I had a 53"x23" panel (it's going to hold up a bigass center speaker for a way-over-the-top home theatre set-up) setting primly in the sunlight, and it just begged to be oiled, so I slobbered a 1:1 mixture of pure tung oil and paint thinner (mineral spirits, Jeff) onnit, wiped it off but good, paying special attention to bleed-back, which you're apt to get with open-pored woods like red oak, and set upon it with a gorgeous Golden Taklon brush (will never be able to thank you enough, Jeff Jewitt) and some 1.5# cut of clear shellac. Pretty much ended up with a generic honey oak look, only better because it's shellac. After a 1/2 hour of drying or so, sliced off the one goober of shellac I'd dripped, slid the thing into the trunk of SWIATAABOC's car and hauled it down to the customer's house to collect half the commission (will have to wait until installation day
- the day on which the rest of the contractors of various stripes are scheduled to get their collective shit together - before I take the 20 minutes to mount it on the wall) and leave the shelf in an out-of-the-way place (there are no such places at my diminutive domicile) to season.
Besides which, someone miscreant has already taken Paddy O'Furniture and therefore teak projects-in-the-concept-stage and fire pit-in-planning notwithstanding, I'm SOL in that department... but thanks for the thought just the same.
A) Wooddork outside in February B) Finish a project (a-ha!) C) De-clutter your living environment (a stretch, but stay with me) D) Get paid for A-C
...and yet you maintain a wistful and dismissive tone throughout.
I, on the other hand, miscalculated the widths of the drawers for the Bathroom Vanity of Uncertain Completion and created several wavy dados for the drawer bottom (thank you, you fine, fine Ryobi router, for wobbling in your base). All in the comfort of my junk-filled carhole.
But dangit, I was turning wood from lovely rectangles (and let's face it, other parallelograms) into scrap, so I'm approaching contentment, even sans Golden Taklon.
And I like Paddy'O Woodworking better than Paddy O'Furniture anyway. Like those mom and pop burger joints with all the apostrophes in the strangest places: "Cri'spy Fry's!"
So watch out if I ever end up as your Galootaclaus. I'll make the sign outa zebrawood. ;-)
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