Well what can I say about woodworking and how it is a part of my life? If nothing else, I suppose I am proof that anyone can have success if they just take the time to read and build their skills patiently. I never took an interest in woodworking, or even tools for that matter, until about half way through the year 2000. My impetuous for learning how to build came from being cheap and wanting things the way I wanted them. I was tired of buying furniture that didn’t look or do exactly like I (or my wife) wanted it. I’ve always had an interest in designing ever since 8th grade mechanical drawing class (before CAD programs or even computers). One day my wife wanted a shelf for one of our kitchen cabinets but we couldn’t find any stock supply shelves that would fit the cabinet dimensions. So with a trip to Home Depot and $5.00 I picked up some off cut ply stock from their scrap bin and a package of sandpaper. A few hours later and I had her shelves installed and she was happy. That’s a good thing.

From there it moved into buying a few cheap power tools from a K-Mart that closed down in our area and many, many trips to the library. I had to read dozens of books about woodworking techniques, design strategies, and project ideas before I tried my hand at some larger projects. My next big step was when Home Depot had a large supply of 3/4″ laminated shelving units on clearance. I picked up $50 worth of material and went to work building a closet shelf system. After the realization that precise measurements are not simply an option and L-Brackets do not solve all your problems I eventually finished the project (which is still in our closet today). It was about this time that I began to discover woodworking websites on line. The most influential of these was John Lucas’ Woodshop Demos page. I went through each and every page on his site and learned more about how to actually use tools from a visual perception as opposed to the conceptual material I had been reading in books. His site gave me the necessary frame of reference I needed to begin some serious woodworking. Seeing how to use power and hand tools step by step was exactly what I needed.

I decided to clear out the half of a one-car garage that was next to the house and set it up as a workshop. If you visit the projects & pictures page you can see my first “real” woodworking project I made in that shop, the room divider. Shortly after that project I discovered the next milestone in my advancement of woodworking, the Woodworkers Website Association at www.woodworking.org. Not only did I continue to expand my knowledge base about woodworking but also began to read the messages others were posting on the info exchange board. After some time I began to post a few tentative questions myself and discovered an invaluable source of reference material as well as meeting many descent, talented woodworkers.

Here’s a visual timeline of my woodworking progress:

1998: My friends purchased this tool belt for my birthday as a joke. They thought it would be funny to see someone like me wearing one.

2001: My little bench top drill press. A Christmas gift that I used to drill and countersink some holes in my new aluminum router mounting plate.

2002: Helping one of my new woodworker.org friends move into his new house after the previous one was destroyed by a tornado. He's since started a very successful retirement woodworking business!

2003: Using the Jasper 400 Circle Cutting Jig to write a review for my new website.