I'm Howard and I'm a WW-aholic...

[Howard]

I can't help it. Everytime I go into a building or restaurant I constantly look at the tables, the railings, the cabinetry. I make mental notes on whether or not I think the craftsmanship was up to snuff. I wonder what kind of finish they used. How the joints were made and how they could have been better. Were they butt joints or maybe M & T? I count the days of the workweek until I can fire up a tool on the weekend. My wife has to drag me out of the garage. It's a sickness, I know. My doctor says to take two router bits and call him in the morning. Thank goodness there isn't a Lee Valley within 2000 miles of me. Rockler is 15 miles so that is just far enough to keep me away most days. Considering all the other things available that one can avail himself to addiction wise, this one isn't too bad! Like the old song says, "if there's a cure for this, I don't want it!" How many other sinners do we have out there?

[crokett]

You are not alone.

[Pappy]

It's only a hobby. I can quit anytime I want to!

[SHADOWFOX]

Thank God!! I thought I was the only one.

[TheRic]

It's only a hobby. I can quit anytime I want to!

Yea, Sure you can.

[ChrisD]

Do you often find yourself staring at the wood grain pattern on conference tables even though you know it's just veneer on a particleboard substrate?

Do you often smell the tip of a freshly sharpened pencil because it reminds you of the aroma created by cedar boards going through the planer?

Do you fire up your Dyson vacuum just for the simulated experience of being next to your DC?

Do you spend your lunch hours at nearest The Home Depot, Lowes, or Menards?

Do you have a Lie-Nielsen #1 as a paper weight on your office desk?

Do you get the obscene urge to caress the intricately carved gothic woodwork in a building and not feel any ounce of shame? (Even if it's like, you know, a church?)

Have you ever wrapped fine cherry or maple shavings in cigarrette paper and...

OK, I think I need my meds now.

[Lefty]

Hi Howard

The first step is admitting you have a problem...

[cabinetman]

I knew there had to be others. My illness rears its wonderful head when watching movies on TV, especially old movies, and looking at the woodwork, details of furniture, and furniture design. I'll say something to LOML about an old hutch that was against the wall that I had mentally photographed, and she'll say something like "There was a hutch, what hutch? Or, "What about the staircase?"



"I'M NEVER WRONG - BUT I'M NOT ALWAYS RIGHT"

[jspelbring]

I went to a museum a couple of weeks ago. Priceless works of art...
... and very well constructed display cases - mostly cherry. The doors and trim were awesome walnut... Help.

[onedash]

If it wasn't for summer heat and winter cold and limited budget I would consider myself an addict. But all those things keep it under control. Usually only busy with WW in the Spring and Fall.
A buddy once told me I don't half step. When I get hooked on something I am hooked. Budget usually slows me down and then I move onto something else. In the past it was plants and bonsai, Then fish which turned into a reef that died (waiting for a permanent home to start again, reefs don't move well) Photography--have liked it since I was a kid. The family gets upset when I take photos of them because it apperantly bothers them that I take more then 2 seconds to snap a photo of them and I guess it hurts to stand still a few extra seconds to get a better than average pic. And every once in a while a good game will keep me occupied far to long.

[radhak]

I have had other interests before, but this WW has proven to be a whole new thing. I rarely stop thinking about it; so much so that i have been hoping the novelty would wear off and it would become just a small part of my life. But this thread scares me, with so many veterans admitting to it!

But the way i deal with it is deny / suppress / ignore / hide / act innocent. As a working man with small kids, i can only satisfy my 'urges' if i steal time :

My colleagues don't know that i spend my lunch time at lumber yards or HD/Lowes or driving all the way to Woodcraft. I am late picking up my daughter (ok, only sometimes) because the line at HD was moving slow, but nobody else knows. LOML is happy i am up before her on weekends - she only has a slight inkling not all that time is spent putting out the trash. She takes the girls for dance practice once a week, and that is the day i am very particular to be home early from work, timing it such that i am parking the car minutes after they have left. (she has never found out )

And the biggest - i have not watched TV for months now; even when the kids are asleep, she has the remote for all she wants ( she did admit it was no fun any longer ); many a time she thinks i have turned in early while i am in the garage.

[bigsteel15]

Do you often find yourself staring at the wood grain pattern on conference tables even though you know it's just veneer on a particleboard substrate?

Do you spend your lunch hours at nearest The Home Depot, Lowes, or Menards?

Do you have a Lie-Nielsen #1 as a paper weight on your office desk?

Have you ever wrapped fine cherry or maple shavings in cigarrette paper and...

OK, I think I need my meds now.

Yes, Yes, Piece of Stainless Steel, Can't say I've tried that but...
I find myself imagining what the grain of a tree would look like when walking through the park.

[Howard]

I put a tv/vcr combo in the garage so I can watch the Cowboy's game on sunday while building away. Gotta be careful to keep an eye on the saw blade rather than the game. It's also handy to watch the couple of videos I got from NYW so I don't have to keep running from the house to the garage and back...

[JR]

A coupla years ago I went to the Getty Museum. They had a display showing 18th century furniture making techniques. The guard literally had to pull me of the priceless furniture!

JR

[dlminehart]

I like the Masterpiece Theater shows on TV, because so many of the sets have British mansions with incredible woodwork. Wainscotting, rooms fully paneled in wood from floor to ceiling, staircases, you name it.