Who am I?

What do you associate yourself with to be you?

Watching TV tonight while reading and it got me to thinking about how I look at whom/ what I am in my life. I mean if anyone asked me I would tell them I’m a historic archaeologist. Yet, I have not done any archaeology work for nearly 2 years now. I am a pretty decent woodworker, have operated heavy equipment, skidded logs, fell timber, worked as a welder; lay out person and a machinist in a fabrication shop, dug ditch, am a pretty decent photographer, and have done a few other things during my life. But do I call myself by any of those titles, no not really. I don’t claim to be a welder, a machinist, a logger, none of those.

I grew up on a ranch, for the first 12+ years of my life I rode horses and herded cattle alongside my dad nearly every week during the school year and all summer long, and while I would say my dad was truly a “cowboy” I would not claim that status.  

Currently I am running a business making packsaddles and other equipment for use with llamas, but do I call myself a manufacturer, only on the insurance and tax forms. It’s not what I would say I “am” to anyone. Not that I am not, it’s just not what I would say I am.

My claim as a parent/ father is one that, while high on my list, does not drive my self worth or my idea of who I am.

What or who do I claim? That’s still in debate in my own mind, I’m open to suggestions but I can’t say I will embrace any of those with great gusto. Perhaps what I am the most, is a work in progress!

Hats

I was watching a movie tonight while eating dinner and scene near the end showed them burying one of the main characters. While I have mostly gotten over that bothering me, for some reason I looked up and saw the hats we have on the top of one of our cabinets in the living room.

These hats once belonged to my dad, Lee Galloway, and two belonged to our son Joseph Galloway. Why is it that we as a family decided that those hats were important and we should save them when other items were given away or thrown out after their deaths? These are not special hats; dad’s is a straw hat that is bent and dirty, showing the many years of wear. Joe’s are black felt, covered in dust and shaped as he liked to wear them.

While considering what to write about when I was looking at them I came up with the main reason that we keep them. It’s partially about the fact that hats have always been can continue to be, important to us. It’s also partly that we considered my dad a true cowboy and that hat is a key element in that lifestyle. A hat that not only kept him cool and protected from the sun in the summer, but one that was removed before entering any house and most buildings, one that was at least touched if not tipped when meeting a woman on the street.

            Joe was not a cowboy in the same way that dad was, but he did associate with the more modern version of a cowboy. The manners of greeting people, the desire to do what was right even it was not the easiest or the most fun, the basic way of life that he thought was right.

            Since Joe was never able to meet my dad, and I’m not a cowboy, and I’m not sure he had ever spent more than a few minutes riding a horse, I’m not sure where he picked up this way of thinking.

            Perhaps my dad was more of an influence on my own life and thus on Joe’s than I thought? All of this deep thinking from looking at 3 dusty hats on the top of a cabinet. Must be time to head to the shop where I can work on not thinking about either of them for a few minutes.

            For those few that have taken the time to read this, what is the key to your memories of loved ones? Is it a dusty old cowboy hat? Let me know. 

Loss and family

There is a certain time when preparing for the holidays that bother me the most. That time when all the preparation is done, everything is in place, but the guests have yet to arrive.

That’s the time when I miss all the loved ones that are not here with us anymore. From grandparents, to parents, to in our case, our son Joe they all have had a great impact on our life. Joe was always the one that filled in the quiet time in the day, and made it speed by.

This year we are hosting almost all of Lynn’s siblings and her dad for Thanksgiving Dinner. There will be just over 20 of us here, and that will keep me busy enough to make it easier to temporarily put those who are not here out of my mind. That’s a bittersweet thing though. It’s nice to be around family and having a good time, but it’s also tough to realize you have forgotten about those that are no longer here too, even if just for a short time.

It’s all just a reminded that those family and friends that are still living deserve the most of our time and energy. Those that have passed are important, but only as the memories they bring to us. The people in front of you at the time are making new memories, let them have your full attention for now and enjoy their company to have when Way down the road; they are no longer here either.

Happy Thanksgiving  to all my family and friends. 

Subjects

I’m sure every person that does a blog suffers from some sort of “subject” mania. Either not enough subjects, or too many, or perhaps they, like me have some great ideas for their blog in the middle of the night that retreat with the shadows when the sun comes up?

The tablet beside the bed idea is a good one, if you don’t need glasses to see, don’t mind turning on a light, etc. etc… I have tried writing in the dark without my glasses…. Sometimes I can make out what I was writing, but most often it’s just hen scratches!

Perhaps a digital recorder will do that job? Or perhaps that will wake up Lynn and then the topic in mind will for sure be gone.

Current projects in the shop include (but are not limited to) Cribbage boards, natural log votive candle holders, ring holders, spatulas, bottle stoppers, more bowls of course, fan pulls, a carved burl bowl(s), a natural log ring mirror, a couple of “paw” table tops, a multi-curved wine bottle holder, and snowmen of a couple different styles, never a shortage of projects. Perhaps I need to make each of those a blog post.

From idea to completion, with photos, anyone interest in that idea? 

Joy and Effort

Not often are those words written together, but they should combined more often. People seem to think that Joy is something that just comes to them, that it’s one of those things that just happens. I disagree, I think joy takes Effort.

            For instance, we are hosting our first Thanksgiving dinner in many years. That will bring us a bunch of joy, but it will decidedly take a bunch of effort as well. As a rough count (some people have not confirmed their attendance yet) we will have 25 people here!

            Beyond the normal cleaning that a house full of guests always requires, we are going to need more seating, more table space, more place settings, etc... All of which takes effort, but in the end bring us great joy.

            Oh, did I mention this is Lynn’s side of the family? In the past we have hosted a couple of her side of the family, but never this many. Will it be hectic, yes sort of, but it will also be great fun and will take us all back to a time when we were younger and all having dinner with her parents. (only a couple years ago… that’s my story and I’m sticking to it!).

            And not I’m done with this blog for now, still many things to get taken care of to make this all come together in time for Thanksgiving! If you have suggestions to make this go smoother, or would like to attend, just comment below and let us know!

            

Priorities are ever changing

Some people will tell you that you Must prioritize things in your life, put the most important things first on the list, take care of those first and move on down the list. Yes, it’s a good idea, on paper. In reality few if any of us have the will power to make that list and stick to it.

            Face it most of the things on the top of the list are Not going to be fun.  In fact, I will go out on a limb and state here that they are probably closer to the list of things you Hate to do. So, that means that we either don’t do those things, or we do a couple of them and then move on to the fun things on that list. Or perhaps you have a whole different list of fun things you want to do, I know I do.

            So, now we have that fun list in hand and are faced with the overwhelming desire to do all of them at once. When none of them have to be done, how do you decide which is first on the list? Is it based on available funds, available materials? The answer to that is going to be different for each of us of course.

            Lately when it comes to my fun list I seem to have developed a small case of ADHD and as a consequence I have literally dozens of projects in various stages of work. The shop is getting changed around, that requires moving some things out of one room an into another so I can then move things out the second room into the first room, etc… that seems straight forward enough, but it’s not. As things come out, they need to go where other things already are, so the moving process takes several steps. Other items need to just be gone, but they are not trash, they need to either be photographed and put on one of the marketing sites or I need to find someone that will at least put them to good use. But in the mean time, all this is not getting me to any of that fun stuff on the list!

            So, Drop all the moving for now, move on to something fun. There is no lack of projects on that list. Bowls that were roughed out months ago that are now dry enough to finish turn, spatulas that were made from the pieces of log that were not right for making bowls, boxes, darning eggs, chain pulls, bottle stoppers, ring holders, well you get the idea, there are a lot of things I could be making.

            Which leads to making a decision, any decision… okay, there, grab that piece of wood and start making whatever it will make.. oh wait, there is already a bowl in the chuck that needs to be finished before I can do that. Okay, start on that instead, dang, it’s cracking and needs to be glued… start on that, but that means now I have to wait for the glue to cure. Yes, it’s super glue so it’s not a long time, but it’s time. Let it dry and move on to something else while that happens, makes sense right?

            Except now I’m three items down on the list (not necessarily in order, but three items). Now this third item does not take a lathe or a chuck, but it does take one of the tools that is still in the other part of the shop. Great, the tool is open enough to use, if not completely set up. And we are off down the rabbit hole again. Might as well make it right before I use it, Pretty soon I’m hours into the project and have yet to finish any of the items on the list.

            Am I making progress? Yes I am, but that progress seems to be happening in random directions and few of the projects are completely finished before I move on to other projects.

            Still, I guess progress is progress and I should take it where I can get it! What does this say? Lists are good, but how they are prioritized may change from day-to-day, or even minute-to-minute! But since I’m the one setting those priorities, I can do that!

            Now, it’s time to get (Squirrel) this blog entry done and put on the site, thank you for your time to read this rambling and perhaps leave a comment. 

Projects Abound!

Working on stuff for work is good, it’s what helps pay the bills, but today my mind was Not on work. There are too many projects in my head screaming to be the first one to get built. Next in line for those are the projects that are already in the works.

Currently in the works are a carved burl bowl, 5 slabs of various sizes and shapes that are going to become clocks, wall art, table tops (small, decorative versions), or ? I don’t know yet. Then there are the 12 spatulas I just cut from the scraps left from cutting bowl blanks a month ago. There is a wooden base and an antler that I want to combine into a necklace holder, three or four rounds that are waiting to be turned into boxes, and one whole tote full of rough turned bowl blanks that should be dry enough now to turn to finial shape. Then there is the new base for the “balanced bowls” set that needs finish sanding and a coat or 8 of lacquer.

Besides all those items there are “requested” items like a couple yarn bowls, a rolling pin, a salad bowl and two others that want me to make something out of some wood they have given me in the last year.

Then there are the items that I just have been thinking about making. A sculpture that has been waiting for a couple years now, a base for a big sphere I want to turn... oh and the jig to turn said sphere. Five slabs we cut this summer that look like dog prints that we want to sand down and have for the wall that will represent the team from our high school, the Elgin Huskies. Snowmen that I need to cut the blanks for and get turned for the holidays, some smaller blanks for hollowed ornaments, There are some spoons that need carved, golf balls that have faces drawn on them but have yet to be carved and some wonderful pieces of driftwood that will become faces with flowing hair, or bark that will become cabins/ castles that hang on the wall.

And all of this has not even came from a glance at my “idea” book that I have with me to make sketches in, write up ideas, etc… that would be a whole other list of things. How do other people ever make it through the day? Focusing on just the task at hand is Very tough some days!

Oh, and I’m an article behind for a group of fellow archaeologists who focus on the Aleutian Islands…  Anyone have a few extra hours they can loan me for a few days? 

Careful what you say

We all know that putting certain things on the internet can have bad consequences. Don’t post that you will be out of town, don’t put out to much information so that hackers can figure out your passwords, etc…

What may not be as clear is that sometimes even good news can be used against you. After recent events in our life, that we thought were good, we posted on Face book, on my business web site, etc… only to have those posts end up costing us money.

The old saying of “don’t post anything you wouldn't want your grandmother to know” is a good one, but in this case, it was something we would have told grandma, and thought it was simply everyday conversation. It’s a sad state of life in the world when even minor comments in a conversation (online or not) can cost you money and time.

Where is the leading you ask? My goal is simply to get you to thinking about every post, every comment you make on someone else’s page, anywhere on line. Is it something that could come back to bite you? Is it worth the end cost?  If it is, then by all means post it. I understand that everyone has different opinions on many subjects, and a good discussion on a wide range of subjects is something we need to have.

Sometimes however, it’s just best to think things through and have those conversations in person, where you know with certainty that what is said will not get to parties that you don’t want to have that info.

Perhaps Face book and other internet based pages need to come with a Miranda warning: Anything you say, can and Will, be used against you!

Hard work versus inspiration.

Writing a blog has turned out to be harder than I anticipated. I mean I have been writing for years, articles, essays, reports, fun little short stories, heck, I have even written a few poems in my time. The difference was that most of those were assignments that someone gave me, or were ideas that I had pitched to magazines, etc…

Now that I have to come up with my own ideas that have to appeal to a range of readers and even more so, try to attract new readers. I could write about my latest project for Rock Rabbit Enterprises or I could give an update on what I’m making to sell under the Llama Hardware business. The problem is, I am not sure anyone really cares what I’m making unless they are already in the market for something for their llamas.

Sure there are people buying the new packs or halters I’m making, but is my writing really what sells those? No, it’s not. You, my readers do look at the projects that I carve or turn, but I don’t’ think man of you really are interested in purchasing those items. I am just hoping that you are at least passing word along and letting others know I’m making things they could use for their homes.

So where is this leading you ask? I guess it’s leading to whether this blog is worth doing? Will anyone care if I don’t continue to write this blog? Will “I” care if I don’t write another blog? Let’s just say, Yes. It’s not that I see a lot of sales being generated from this blog, but that’s not why I started it to start with. I started it because I can’t not write. It’s in my system, I have to write. Now, what I write does change and most of it will never see the light of day, and will absolutely not see this blog, but sometimes, just sometimes I take the time to share things on here, and if only one or two of you actually read them, well so be it.

I’m told that writing is an art, that my wood work is an art, and perhaps it is, but it’s also a lot of work at times. And it’s the work aspect of it that brought on this, and Yes I admit it, this long and boring post. But now that I have some of the starving artist aspect out of my system I’m over it for now and ready to go back to the artistic part of making “art.” Thank you all for taking the time to read this and put up with the downside of my art.

A year has passed.

It’s hard to get my head around, but I will have soon owned Llama Hardware for a year!

The first thing that needs to happen is that I need to thank my fantastic wife, Lynn for putting up with me for this first year. If it were not for her putting up with all my long hours, and sometimes short temper, this would have ended before it started!

While I have not added to the line as much as I wanted to, I have maintained the quality that Flaming Star and Llama Hardware is known for, and that is something to be proud of in today’s climate of instant gratification.

Things have changed a bit, but only in that my speed at producing the Flaming Star products has increased. My hours are no longer quite as long, (although I do hate to take weekends off when I have orders on the books), my temper is no longer short and I’m really settling in to the process.

Second is I need to thank all you, my customers for all the purchases you have made over the last year. Thank you! Without you, I would not be where I’m at now and could not have visions of where I want to be a year from now. While I did about the same in business as Barb did in the last couple of years, I did not do the amount she did the few years previous.

To make that happen I must as for your help. Please pass word along to everyone you know, even if they are not llama owners, you never know if some of their friends might be llama owners, or friends of their friends, etc… the say word-of-mouth is one of the best advertising methods around and I hope that saying goes along with FB and with all of you helping me I can increase this coming years sales.

I Will make time to add in some new products over the next year now that I’m getting faster at the products I already make.

Again, thanks to all of you for helping me realize one of my dreams! 

New Appreciation for groups!

After working to garner some interest in starting a wood working group(s) in the area I have a new appreciation of what others have done to start the various groups I have been a member of over the years.

All of those I helped with one way or another. Either by doing demos, helping with fundraisers, or just helping to recruit members and generally help run them. With all of them though, they were already “groups” by the time I joined. Some bigger and more active than others, but all of them had been going for several years.

Many people here have expressed interest in being a member of a group should I get one going, but no one has offered to help get one started, or put up a location to get them recognized in the community.

The local Arts Center has offered up their studio space for Tuesday evenings from March to June for us to hold a carving group and I’ll be putting out word on that shortly.

Not one to give up easily, perhaps even when I should, I have decided to go a different direction. I’m going to start doing a meeting with just a couple other people (family members) and put out notice that we are meeting at X time at Y location and see if anyone shows up.

If enough people show up, we can discuss which way we want to go. If it stays just two or three of us, that’s ok too, it simply means less opinions need to be heard when we move forward.

In the end, like most other things, it’s going to be a group effort to make this a true “group” and it is a relief to know that it’s out of my direct control and a true community effort.

In the future I either will be reporting on how there is now a Carving, turning, or flat wood working group(s) in town, or there isn’t. 

Welcome to Home ownership!

Well, it’s been a fun few weeks. We moved in the end of January, Thanks to all those that came and helped us! It is nice to have all our stuff in “our” house, but it will be weeks if not months before we have everything put away. We Are gaining though, a little here and a little there when we are not working.

The doggy door is now installed making JJ a “happy dog” that can come and go as he pleases. That makes us happy as well, we no longer have to get up to let him in and out and I won’t have to stop working and go upstairs to do the same during working hours.

The funny event so far, well funny to us, perhaps not so much for the furnace guy. Our furnace stopped working a week after the furnace guy had been here to talk to us about a gas line that goes through the air intake duct. (its fine). We called him again and he was here the next day. After he and his apprentice worked on the furnace for over two hours he declared it a bad circuit board and ordered in a new one. Since we had a portable propane heated and the weather was not too cold we made due for the two days it took to get the part. He showed up with the part, changed it out, but the furnace failed to come on as he expected. Again he worked on it for a couple hours and managed to get it to work. Well, for a few hours at least. I called him again that afternoon and he told me he would warrantee the board and have a new one again in two more days.

True to his word, he showed up on the morning of the second day with the new board and was on hold with the furnace company. One of the first things he told me is that in the middle of the night he had woken up with an idea that the problem might not be the board. He proceeded to check out a pressure switch (one of two) and found that it was not wired correctly. Apparently in the past someone had worked on the furnace and rather than fix the problem had simply bypassed one of the switches. He hooked them up the way they should have been, cleaned a bit of moisture out of lines and the furnace fired up just like it was supposed to do…. An hour later he had the original board back in place and the furnace was still working like it is supposed to… When I tried to at least pay him for his time! When I pressed him he said it was a “learning experience” for him and not my fault he couldn't find the problem to start with.

One thing is certain, I will be recommending him to anyone in the area that needs furnace work done!

It’s a new year.

It’s been a long time coming but we are finally back in NE Oregon. Many years ago I was a kid in Pilot Rock, now we are living in Pendleton, just 15 miles from where I lived until the 5^th grade.  

Our new house (we sign papers on the 20^th) is an old, 1920, two story ranch house that was moved from one end of Pendleton to the other in 1960 and put on a basement. There is still a visible seam about ½ up the bottom half of the second story windows where they cut the top part of the house off to make clearance under the power lines. Since the only road through town at the time was right though down town, it must have taken up the whole of the street and been moved during the dark of the night.

Now sitting on an acre of ground the house is bordered on one side by a storage unit and on the other by a small city park. Quiet neighbors and a slow speed limit for traffic in front of the house will take some getting used to, but I think we can handle it. The nearest neighbor behind us is in a housing addition and they are about 120 yards up the hill behind the house.

There is a small, very seasonal creek between us and the hill, but it’s enough that we have to have flood insurance. I guess it Could flood if we had a 500 year flood but no one in the area can remember it ever flooding. A nice double car garage with a couple of small bonus rooms in the back will make a great wood shop and the deck will allow us to host gatherings at our house for a change.

So, here we are about to move in to a new (to us anyway) house, in a town we have only lived near, and starting a new business, in a new year. All is good with the world. Well our small little section of it anyway. Oh, and it’s the first time since I was a baby that my brother and I have lived in the same town.

Welcome 2015, here is to making it a Great year!