New Hobby ... Chainmail

I needed a new hobby like I needed a hole in my head. [My Dad used this saying a lot, but it never made sense to be because we already have holes in our heads.] But summer without air conditioning is too hot to knit, my woodworking takes up space we don't have until the remodel is done, and if I don't do something with my hands I go stir-crazy.

A friend was working on chainmail at some cons we both attended, and I was impressed at how cool it was. Finally, in April I took the plunge and ordered some pre-cut rings and pliers from The Ring Lord. They arrived a couple of weeks later (slow shipping from the wilds of Saskatchewan). I started linking the rings together, and I was hooked!

There's a lot more to chainmail (also called maille) than armor and exotic underwear. Using the same methods, one can make some incredible jewelry chains. Working with the rings is like solving a topology puzzle: can this size rings make that chain? How do I fit that ring in there? How can I hold it with the pliers to close the ring? I'm finding it good work for my brain as well as my hands.

I have another order of rings due to arrive soon. And I have a project list:

- a bronze vest, tailored style, for me

- chains to loop around Ocelot's black pants

- backpack zipper pulls in many colors (anodized aluminium) to sell at Climber's school's holiday marketplace

And some other rings to make some jewelry from. Who knows, maybe I'll go into business selling chainmail creations!

Dozukis and Sunbirds

I should post more often. There. Guilt trip over.

Two words for the day, completely unrelated except in my life.

A Dozuki is a Japanese woodworking saw, intended for cutting the joints that lock two pieces of wood together. Like all Japanese saws, it is frighteningly sharp.


I'm working on my first "real" woodworking project, a Shaker-inspired wall shelf with drawer. (Project plan at: http://www.popularwoodworking.com/article/shapely_shaker_shelf/ )I'm at the point where I need to cut the 1/4"plywood for the drawer bottom and back. My husband, the Mad Engineer, has set up a welding station in front of our bandsaw, the best power tool for the job. I tries the hand held jigsaw, but it has a case of palsy and couldn't settle down long enough to even begin the cut. So, in desperation, I got my dozuki out, expecting the 24" long cut to take an hour of push-pull, arm falling off sweaty hard labor.

In 3 minutes, I had a nice, straight cut, all the way through. Including set-up time, the dozuki was faster than the jigsaw. More fun, too.


Now, the next word of the day: Sunbird.

Sunbird is a calendar program, created by the Mozilla project, and available free for all major platforms.

In order to manage my family's busy schedule, I keep a series of Google calendar files, one for each person. For several years, I've been using GCal, an abandoned single-function browser that let me see my Google Calendar web page. But Google changed its log in page, and GCal no longer can get in to my calendars.

I first looked at software to make my own stand alone web page ... but I run Mac OS X 10.4.11, an old version, by choice, and the software won't run on my OS. I found a connector to let iCal, the built-in calendar program synch with Google calendar, but it is clunky, and I don't much like iCal anyway. Eventually, I found Sunbird.



Sunbird looks a lot like Firefox, which makes sense, since they are both Mozilla projects. Like Firefox, there are add-ons and themes to customize the calendars. I added one item that allows invisible two-way communication with my Google calendars. A little bit of color coding, and I'm all set.

Except I seem to be drawn to abandoned software ... Mozilla is planning to abandon Sunbird, for lack of user interest and a shortage of developers. So if you are intrested, wander over to http://www.mozilla.org/projects/calendar/sunbird/ and download your own copy.

Let's Try This Again

Long time, no blog. Is anyone still here? [Was anyone ever reading this? Oh, well.]

I don't make New Year's Resolutions, but if I did, keeping this blog would be one. So with that, let me do a recap on what's been going on lately, neatly compartmentalized.

1. House Remodel For the past year, we've been working on (and off) with an architect, the goal being to make our too small 1950s "colonial" house work for us. After the first bids, for the shell and mechanicals only, were coming in at 30% over our entire budget, we re-thought the plan. So now we'll be doing our own contracting, with the architect assisting us by finding workers.

2. Odyssey of the Mind I'm coach of my son's team. I've coached OotM / DI teams before, so while this is a time sink, it's not much mental stress.

3. SF Fan This is the local con season. Arisia was last weekend; after a snafu I got Programming to reduce my workload to only 10 panels. Half were with kids — would have been more, if the head of the kid's program had asked me to work more instead of just changing my schedule without telling me.
Boskone is next month, as usual my husband-creature and I are running the Registration Desk. This is our third year of doing this, we have it down to a science and have enough trustworthy volunteers that we can enjoy the con too.

4. Knitting The shawl I was starting at my last blog post is still unfinished, but the end is near. I also just finished a Moebius scarf for my math-loving son, and am beginning a matching hat. I have a few little things on needles too. Taught knitting to kids and adults at Arisia (and taught my helpers how to teach).

5. Gifted Education First, a public call-out to my son's teacher this year. He's wonderful. Last year's teachers worked to put the brightest kids together in one classroom, and my boy now has both a teacher who gives hm challenging work and fellow students to learn with. It's a wonderful year. My daughter is having a tougher time, but mostly socially, as her good friends are in different schools this year.

6. Woodworking My new obsession. I've wanted to make furniture for decades, but never had the time, space, or money to set up a shop. I was also scared of tablesaws ... but the house remodel will demand my skills to do finish trim and built-in furniture. This past fall, I took a basic woodworking class at our local vo-tech school, and realized:
- I had more book learning than anyone but the teacher
- I'm enough of a perfectionist to do good work, even for a beginner
- There's a wealth of woodworking information on the Internet.
So I began "drinking from a fire hose", as I call my obsessive study of new material. And I learned even more:
- I prefer working with hand tools
- A tablesaur, as Alf the Cornish Woodworker calls it, is not essential.

So, I've been buying some hand tools, and learning to sharpen them. I'm also almost done with my first project, a hanging Shaker shelf with a drawer and coat hooks, in clear-finished maple. So far, it looks great.

Enough for now ... time to begin my morning chores with a brisk walk to my son's school to deliver him, then a contemplative walk home.