We have had a very cool and pleasant summer here in the North Country, until now. While I know that the corn farmers have been praying for hot weather, we woodworkers like it cool, thank you very much. That is why I was very disappointed when, just as I was loading a big pile of lumber and sheet stock into my shop, the temperature nudged over 90˚ F … and then just kept going up.
And not just the heat: the dew point – a term that should be changed to the “this is why you feel like fainting index” – continued to rise until the weatherman said that if it went any higher we would all drown. This summer swelter all kicked into full swing just as I began to build some modular bookshelves for the print magazine.
Full disclosure does require me to say that I have an air conditioner in my shop. But it is a puny little window unit that is there more for moral support than temperature control. Ah well, I guess that some one who will be fanny-deep in snow just a few months from now should not regret sweating away a few summer evenings. And after all, drops of sweat will raise the grain for a final sanding as well as water – won’t they?
Rob Johnstone, Woodworker’s Journal
P.S: For those of you who like downloadable woodworking plans, we have a large supply of them over at our WWJ Store. They are not free, like the ones here in the eZine, but there is a wide variety to choose from. Check them out; there might be one you can’t live without.
