One of the first bits of woodworking advice I ever got was to never have a
bit of yourself in the path of the edge and it has served me quite well.
 Most cuts I get now are from the wood itself.  I keep forgetting that a
cleanly planed 90 degree corner in something like hard maple makes a very
sharp edge.  Also as Mr Thompson pointed out it takes a while to get in the
habit of following the rule.

A trick I came up with myself is to imagine holding the part in question
with vice grips instead of your had.  If you think to yourself: "vise grips
there is a terrible idea because I am going to miss and ruin my hatchet
edge on.... OH".  Somehow for myself the fear of ruining an edge is much
stronger than the fear of chopping off my hand.  This has stopped me from
doing a number of very very stupid things.

Also remember WWSS (What Would She Who Must Be Obeyed Say).  If in your
head she thinks it is a stupid idea it probably is.  Remember she has years
of experience observing the outcomes of our various stupid plans.

Bob
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