If you missed the March Guild meeting you missed a great program on ball bearings presented by Tim Zerger of IBT. Tim is very knowledgeable and has a great deal of field experience. Code word for “field experience” is humans performing badly in public. Tim kept our attention with stories from 30 years of experience on how we should avoid abusing bearing during the installation and about improper maintenance. We can learn a lot from mistakes made by others as well as ourselves. Conversely he passed on a lot of knowledge about how to properly install and take care of these wonders of engineering. We appreciate his willingness to spend the evening with us! Please consider IBT the next time you need to replace the bearing in your equipment. If all the IBT employees are half as knowledgeable and personable as Tim, you can’t go wrong with giving them your business.
Show and Tell was one of the best in recent history from the lifelike intarsia projects made by Pansy Legall and Bob Perry, to the beautiful wedding box made by Jim McCord. It goes without saying, the entire list of projects on display this month were outstanding. New members hit home runs with their projects as well! John Kennedy presented an award winning mantel clock made of wild cherry and Robert Frerking presented three beautiful segmented bowls. My neighbor Tom Hand displayed a birch storage chest he made for his daughter Becky. In addition, everyone commented on how well executed Gale Markley’s segmented bowl was assembled. One member told me that he was a bit intimidated by the quality of the projects. I don’t think that is totally bad thing because I thought to myself that I better get moving and push to improve my own skills. But with that said, the Guild is all about accepting everyone wherever they are in their skill development. So the bottom line is not to compare yourself to others but rather your current work to what you used to do. Sam Maloof once told a surgeon friend of mine, “I burn my mistakes and you bury yours”. It’s good to keep things in perspective!
Peace!
Jay S. Helland
Words to Live BY
Repetition leads to refinement and refinement leads to Success!
There is a difference between learned knowledge and skill which takes residence in one’s own hands.
Doug Stowe, Woodworker & Box Maker
