I interviewed with Jeff Orgon this month.

We went to the farm early in the month. I was grateful to be in a quiet and safe place far from the city (and internet).

I mailed a small check to North House Folk School. I’ve always appreciated what the good people who work and teach there do, but in reading their annual report, I was awe-struck by how they created a hands-on craft kit for every family in Cook County, MN, and Grand Portage as a way to serve local youth during the pandemic. I knew that they were community-focused, but this really demonstrated that idea as real action for me. My check is small because we all in our own way might be worrying about finances and future economies, but if there’s one thing I’ve learned in spoon carving, it’s that every little bit counts. I hope you can help support North House Folk School or your local craft and folk art school. Why? I think that the following quote by Harley Refsal is another good reason:
“I love that craft is such a great leveler. I see this especially in the younger people I work with. Folks who’ve heard over the years that they’re not good students, and then you set them down with a blank and a knife and it just clicks for them. You can see their confidence growing over the course of the class. At the same time, I’ll see people who have always been at the top of any class they’ve taken pick up a knife and find out that they’re all thumbs. They aren’t always having the most fun, but they’re learning important skills too. At the end they have much more empathy and patience than when they’d started.”

Finished a pear spoon that was inspired by a spoon that I bought from Maximilian Neukäufler.

This is my favorite time of summer when the days are long and the temperature is just right. Hope you all are well.
I redesigned my website. Please give it a look over and let me know what’s missing that you would like to see there.