It's been suggested that I should consider some sort of
>woodworking school that would cater to the recreational,
>weekend warrior type woodworker. This makes sense in a
>couple of ways since, for me, building is fun and sharing
>knowledge is fun.
I spent a week at the John C. Campbell Folk School's "Tablemaking" class. It was a gift from my wife, who's cousin teaches the class.
What I "learned" there had a lot less to do with working wood than it did the pure fun of doing it with a group of like minded folks.
Let's face it: "Tablemaking" is pretty simple. If I asked whether the education was worth the price, (approx $800- room, board, materials), it'd be a tough call. But if I asked whether I had the _best_time_of_my_life, I'd have to answer: "When can I go again?"
We woodworkers tend to be an "isolated" type of people. This class was a "people" thing, and it was awesome.
There were a couple of older women in our class, and watching them be amazed that they could actually turn raw lumber into a finished hallway table was worth the cost alone.
I'd recommend anything you can get into. It's a great experience.
Michael Baglio