At dinner, my oldest son asked my wife and I if it were possible to 'go back in time.' I waited to see what her response was going to be, as she did, mine. After a brief silence we said in unison, "no." Well, let me take you back to circa 1974. I wanted to share an image of the first work bench I ever knew. It was given to my eldest sister and I before I was even in kindergarten. I remember looking through leaflet advertisements from local hardware stores like Coast to Coast and Gambles, to find that special item, 'to make.' Seeing this forgotten bench again for the first time in thirty-plus years, it made me think back to wanting to make something. I 'got it' way back then. I knew I wanted to be a maker - a maker of things. A lot of time had passed in between the first rush of the inventive spirit and when I actually started making objects. The thought of there being a connection, again, hadn't produced itself until last summer, when the memories of innocent child wanting to make his parent hangers - yes, hangers - out of scrap 2X4's, came storming back. I distinctly remember the feeling of realizing I lacked the requisite skills (and tools) to undertake and achieve such a lofty goal. After all, a wire coat hanger from wood?! I haven't given hope, but have moved on to alternative articles of manufacture. Fishing lures, for example.
