No, this is not a joke. I just came across this strange confluence of
people yesterday and, to me, it shows how woodworking connects
disparate individuals.

I work at a university that has a professional woodshop attached. It
also has a bunch of Benedictine monks. I hang around the woodshop to
pick up scraps I can use for pen turning. In this case, I was dropping
by to pick up some buckthorn branches that the campus forester found.

Anyway, two of the guys I talk to often were loading the drying kiln
with 2x6 oak planks. So I chipped in (no pun intended) to help out.
Then Father Tupa dropped by with his dog and helped us load. He is a
world reknowned painter (his studio is above the woodshop).

It struck me that there are few places on earth that you could
encounter a young monk woodworker, a professional furniture maker, a
writer (me) and a world class painter pitching together on such a
project.

Just a thought.

Bob Filipczak