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!