Homemade Square Awl

I got the idea to make this tool after seeing a square (birdcage) awl that Paul Sellers had.  I made the handle out of a 1.25" dowel that I planed to 8 sides then turned on my mini lathe.  I made the ferrule from a brass fitting and the square awl from a 3.5" hardened masonry nail.  I first annealed the nail, then shaped it with files and sandpaper.  I then hardened by heating to non-magnetic orange stage then with oil quenching.  I tempered at 400F in a toaster oven.  To get the name like Paul had on his handle, I just laser printed out my name in mirror image then placed on a wetted side with clear waterbased polyurethane.  I let dry then put water on it and lightly rubbed the paper off leaving the name.

Guideboat Half Hull Model

Just finished an Adirondack Guideboat made from John Blanchard's plans from Mystic Seaport.

Half Hull Modeling

I just started to get into making half hull boat models.  I got started with a model of the boat "Wave" which I purchased plans from the WoodenBoat store.  It is the first picture shown in this series.  I also got some good tips from Douglas Brooks' tutorial.  I really like his idea when gluing up the wood to include a colored piece of construction paper for the waterline.  It seems too thin but it shows up just perfect.
I also found a great video series on YouTube where Malcolm Crosby (from the Crosby catboat family of boatbuilders in Osterville, Cape Cod) builds half hull models.  Betsy Crosby Thompson has put together great videos of her father building these models.  This is a real treasure as his model are exquisite and he provides all kinds of tips and details how he does it.  Every part of the process is shown too.
I am currently working on a John Blanchard Adirondack guideboat where I purchased the plans from Mystic Seaport. I really like making models of small craft rather than the large yachts 

Wave

 Flatiron Skiff

 Chamberlain Dory

 Whitehall

Baseball Life Lessons

• Even the best teams will lose 70 out of the 162 scheduled games in a season
• The best of the best players will fail to get a hit 70% of the time
• Take it one pitch at a time, one inning at a time.  Don’t dwell on yesterday except to learn from it.
• “It ain’t over til its over” (Yogi Berra) – anything can happen even if you are down in the ninth inning with 2 strikes and 2 outs.
• Run everything out as hard as you can.  Joe DiMaggio said, “There is always some kid who may be seeing me play for the first time. I owe him my best”.
• You don’t always need the home run.  Lots of singles and walks can add up runs quickly. 
• Be patient and wait for something you can hit
• Keep your eye on the ball (the process, the goal, etc.)
• Even if you are on the bench, be ready to go in at any time.
• Take a moment to relax and refresh (7^th inning stretch).  Rushing a play can lead to errors.
• Slumps don’t last forever and neither do hot streaks.  Consistency over the long term is key.
• You may not always get calls in your favor (umpire calls).  You will get calls that balance that out over time.  Focus on what you can control.

Eagles Win and the Kelce Rant

Any football fan has to appreciate what the Philadelphia Eagles did to win Super Bowl VII. They had several injuries to key players but just kept on winning. There were no stand out superstars that distracted from the team purpose. I do believe Doug Pederson's statement that this winning is a new norm for the team. As long as they continue to keep humble and stay focused as a team, I don't see why they could not continue. We'll have to see if the play style of Carson Wentz will be able to keep him healthy for an entire season.

The team became likable and it seems that the city could overcome the bad events of the past like throwing snowballs at Santa Claus and cheering when Michael Irvin was hit so hard he was not moving on the field. Just when you thought that could be turned around, you get Jason Kelce's parade celebration speech which was completely out of line especially when he used profanity in front of a crowd full of families. Then on top of that, the crowd is cheering him on and later writing that his speech was spectacular. Really? I may be the only one that did not like his speech at all.

Doesn't Kelce know that by winning the super bowl, you silence all of the critics? You no longer have to moan and complain how the media made it so hard for you to succeed because it was the exact opposite. Instead of “F-em!” and “F-you!” why not take the high road and say “To all the critics, Thank you, because it gave us even more incentive to prove everyone wrong”?  You just won a championship. Act like you are a champion and not some drunken buffoon.  Instead, here he was, dressed up in full Mummer costume and made himself stand out from all the other teammates. He wanted all of the spotlight and was so unlike the character of this Eagles team. Lead by quiet selfless players like Carson Wentz, Nick Foles, Brandon Graham, the team is group of players that pull for each other without the superstar diva special treatment that plagues so many teams now. Even very outspoken players like Malcom Jenkins gave a short speech, then retreated back behind the curtain of the team. Kelce was the only one that had to make a spectacle of himself. I am sure the team and the NFL had to cringe at his foul language but kept smiles on their faces because there was nothing they could do.

Just because it was a super bowl championship celebration and he had a platform did not excuse it. I am hopeful that after the euphoria of the championship wears down some that people will rethink his speech and demand from the NFL, the team and owners that we don't hear that kind of thing again.

If Kelce is not fined and reprimanded for not following the rules then speeches like this will become the “new norm” and that is sad. In an NFL season that was full of controversy, the Eagles helped to save the season by authoring an epic “Underdog” story that every fan can relate to and hope for. Yet Kelce ruined it for many NFL fans in 5 minutes and added to the poor image of the Philadelphia fan base. This is an opportunity for the NFL to step in and put a stop to this kind of thing that does nothing to uplift the image that so many good players work hard to maintain.