a party...

Yesterday we celebrated my 40th year of woodworking with an event at the Eureka Springs School of the Arts. The largest space available on campus was our blacksmithing studio. We fired up the forges to take the chill off, but the weather warmed during the day, allowing us to  shut down the heat, open the studio doors and enjoy a very beautiful day. We had about 140-150 guests, buying my work, and getting a preview of the new ESSA woodworking studio, now under construction. Many of our guests had never been to ESSA before, so it was a great introduction to what we offer to the community. Many were surprised at our lovely campus.

We also raised money to buy tools and equipment in our new wood shop. It was an extremely successful event, thanks to my wife's organizational skills and friends who helped with the preparation of food, the dispersal of beverages, and the sale of my work. I was kept busy visiting with guests and signing books.

After going for weeks with no feral hogs in our around out trap, we were visited by three hogs recorded by the game camera. Once we begin to get confident we've made a dent in their population, there are more that appear, so we are convinced the problem will go on for decades unless the state of Arkansas steps up to the plate and makes a major effort at eradication.

The image above is of objects from my new book, Making Classic Toys that Teach.

Make, fix, create, and offer others a pathway, by your example, to learn likewise