[Woodcarver] a beginner left out.

[Muzzy]

Hi Joe;

A fellow lurker and beginner here with a few thoughts.  I've been away for a
while so I'm just getting caught up on my reading.

As I read through the dozens of emails that arrive each day (I decided not
to use the digest format) I think about this group as a circle of people
sitting around a campfire or a kitchen table just visiting and talking.
Most of the time they laugh and joke and tell stories about each other and
other things (much of which I don't get), but occasionally the talk becomes
serious and the advice and wisdom flow freely.  I revel in the warmth of the
chatter and look for those pearls.  This is much as I remember it being as a
kid with my grandparents (who raised me) and their friends.  And just like
then I also appreciate the fact that they don't chase me away from the table
while they're visiting.

In this day and age, sitting around kitchen tables and campfires drinking
tea and chatting is no longer.  Now we do it through computers and the
internet.  The beauty of it is that I don't miss a thing if I go away for a
few days or am busy working on something.  I sit down and get caught up at
my own pace.

If my feeble carving attempts have taught me anything, it is about
patience - my lack thereof and need for more.  Stick around my friend, and
keep lurking.  You'll see what I mean.

Muzz

A Zen master once said to me, "Do the opposite of whatever I tell you." So I
didn't.