In article ,
charlie b wrote:

My woodworking goal is to be able to develop the knowledge,
skills and abilities necessary to design, build and finish
furniture I can't afford to buy.

(BTW - Tom Plamann's done it - so there's hope.)

What're you shooting for?

charlie b

When I hit 50, I took aim at winding down my workaholic lifestyle.
Workshop and workers to the left, customers and the regulation (tax,
safety, workman's comp, insurance, bankers, accountants, suppliers and
weasels) to the right...and Rob in the middle. A continuous act of
putting out fires, starting new ones and always running into-and setting
deadlines. I hadn't turned on a piece of equipment on in a few years.
That corporate treadmill already cost me two marriages and I was burnt
out and freshly divorced. I had it up to here with the bull****. Sad
part was... nobody to blame. I couldn't even take a vacation without my
cell/satellite/internet connections. Even a 10,000 mile trip in 1999 to
Australia wasn't far enough from the rat-race.

But it was on the way back from the Great Ocean Road through the Otways
rain-forest in a pub in the town of Forest, that I had a few pints with
a few locals that it sank in. I actually caught myself relaxing... what
the hell.. my plane wasn't leaving for another 2 weeks...
When I came back to Canada, I set the wheels in motion to liquidate my
assets to start all over. I had to cut clean. Sept 2003 I went out the
laneway from the shop and retired.... well... semiretired.
My new lady-friend at the time made the effort to show me around her
province, The Cabot Trail, seafood, beer and people similar to those I
met in Oz.
Laid back. Many people come by it naturally. I had to acquire the skill
of being laid back. Piddling around in my garage/workshop (then empty)
allowed me to think. I LIKED working with my hands, using my head. I
could whip up a solid surface countertop in my sleep... the money is
good.. so I decided to fund the growth of a woodworking shop entirely
from the proceeds of my solid surface sales. So far so good.
30 years of millwork experience on all levels has left me with enough
experience not to do foolish things.
I do continue to slap myself when I ohh-and-ahhhed at that General
24"(?) Heavy Duty Industrial planer with the serrated feedrollers that
David Eisen at Federated Tools showed me a few days ago...

Perspective and therapy.... and a project plan. What to build first?
I'm working on a new cherry headboard, then what? Was thinking about
Harley Davidson rocking horses..there are no plans I like, so I'm
drawing away.. I could easily make a 100 of those and make some money
*SLAP*