Real Wood

AI makes particle board. As a child, woodworking was part of my school’s curriculum. One of our projects was making a simple sailboat, with the kind of shape and blockiness of those wood toys you see for little kids. From a solid block, we chiseled out the center cavity where the hull was, made a hole for an inserted rounded piece to become the mast, and carved off the sides to make the prow. Decades later, I attended a woodshop class that Jen gifted me. I made a simple side table. With the rig camper we have, I made a dropdown table for the rear barn door. I can make a table today. It would not be great. It would work, for some time, but it would not be the level of craft of the furniture I have in the home. These are mid-century pieces made out of solid joinery employing techniques before glues, particle board and other mass efficiency and machinery made joinery automated. I deeply admire the quality. I know the distance between what I can make and what a master craftsperson can…