‘Tis the Season.

It feels so odd, to be sitting here working on the December issue of PW, because it’s the middle of August and in the mid-90’s. But, alas, that’s how far ahead the magazine world runs. As you’re reading this, I’m guessing it’s October or November, with the holiday season looming. The years that I’ve put together Christmas gifts for everyone are those of love/hate relationships. Most recently, I made a batch of twenty five end-grain cutting boards. I love the fact that I don’t have to think about what we’re getting for people. Bring a batch of cutting boards, and let everyone choose their own. I also enjoy that, to this day, everyone’s still using theirs. I visit and see them sitting on the counter, with the gentle signs of wear. But you know what? I hate mass production. At the end of two weeks of making cutting boards, I would rather chug a bottle of glue than put together another cutting board. At the end of the day, however, the time investment was worth it. I hope you had a chance to put a few gifts together for this season. If you didn’t, there’s still time. At the end of the day, we can chug a bottle of glue together.

On another note, the shift in the seasons marks another cyclical time of the year—the time when the field mice start looking for somewhere warm to settle in for the winter. Most people’s shops tend to be the ideal spot for them to sneak in and hunker down. There’s piles of lumber, usually our shops are in a garage that may not be sealed super tight, etc. However, I’m ready this year. It took me years to convince upper management to allow me to hire another employee, but we finally added another name to the Popular Woodworking Masthead. Goose, the new shop manager, has made our shop his home. He’s a skilled mouser, a rowdy little playmate, and a master of sneak attacking your feet as you walk by the workbench. But, I’ll tell you what—it’s fun having him racing around the shop, stealing packages of screws. Cheers!