I can take a lack of imagination from some folks in the area of
woodworking. In fairness, many in my woodturning club are retired from
careers or businesses after many years of toiling at essentially the
same job. In their field, they may have been brilliant, innovative,
and imaginative. In a new endeavor they are cautious, thoughtful, and
follow the rules probably like some did when they were employed.

But I can't abide a snob. I don't like it when people don't respect
each other (ahhh... starting to show my age here) and I feel like I
need to get a hold of their necks when they do. Just because you learn
to do a few good tricks and techniques in woodturning doesn't make you
a respected, and certainly doesn't make you an expert.
And it certainly doesn't allow you to put yourself up on a pedestal.
Like most real pros, the more you know about what you are doing, the
more you realize how much more there is that you don't know about what
you are doing.

I have said this before on this forum and it is certainly true of most
clubs; since almost none of us are making a living woodturning, why not
just sit back and appreciate the differences? It's great to have goals
and aspirations, but why should anyone have to feel that a piece I
turned was inferior because it wasn't turned using the "proper" (read:
accepted) techniques for design and implementation?

Robert