OldTools Archive

Recent Bios FAQ

174850 "Ed in Ottawa" <ed@a...> 2007‑12‑04 BIO UPDATE - Short and LONG
SHORT: This List Rocks! I Need More Tools!

A TOOL POEM:
Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses of rust yearning to breathe free,
The wretched, paint-spattered refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless tools, tempest-tossed and postage-paid, to me:
I open my toolbox beside my door.
(With apologies to Emma Lazarus........)

LONG: Sigh...., with the recent torrent of Bios, I guess its' "me too" time
for an update to the old Bio. I think it was Jim E. that opened the
floodgates.

I joined the list in 2004 and it would be impossible to put a value on the
vast amount of information and help I have gleaned from the listmembers.
Thank you all, what a fantastic group of enthusiasts.

As much as I've travelled, Montreal is still my favorite city on the planet.
I could be excused for having a soft spot considering I was born, raised,
and schooled there. Currently divide my time between three different cities,
mostly chasing sun and water.

Places I've worked; jewellery factory, hobby store, scale model wooden boat
building. My "real job" for the last 30 years is "cradle to grave" physical
security engineering - The company I own specializes in major, high value
projects that take several years to assess, plan, design, install and
complete. This means I spend a chunk of time travelling to odd destinations;
prisons (fortunately they consistently let me out....), military bases (they
consistently let me in but would prefer that I didn't leave.....),
Government buildings (I get in but, consistently, no one is ever at their
desk.....), Nuclear Plants (I get in but I'd rather not stay too long.....),
etc. you get the idea). This helps to explain why I am the self-appointed
"security consultant" to the Porch--;-)

My primary hobby is a nearly fourty year interest in photography: most of my
contributions to the list so far have been cross-over knowledge from the
photographic field; leather, wood, brass, optics, repairs. At one point I
owned the largest used equipment store in Canada, as a sideline of course
(LOL). Strong interest in early photography when it was crossing over from
an upstart technology into an art form, and I'm a fan of Steichen,
Stieglitz, Strand, Lange, Atget and other luminaries.

I read a lot, and enjoy a huge library, but I have very few books on tools.
Haven't owned a TV for ten years therefore the mysteries of St. Roy. will
remain just that.

Porch Dwellers Greek Chorus chants: Yes, Yes, blah, blah, blah but tell us
about the TOOLS man!!. Very limited assortment of Galoot tools since they
are nearly impossible to find in my current location. I have a Stanley 4, 5,
7. Some chisels including some Marples, Sandvik and Butcher. I have only
been able to find a couple of garden variety Disstons, fortunately not
painted. Phasing out the tailed tools as I go. Have a bench; need to make a
better bench.  Still delving into the Eleusinian Mysteries of sharpening. I
need to get some woodworking vises and some decent saws. Wood butcher
mostly, and I'm always in awe of the talent displayed in GC.

I really enjoy the often spirited repartee on the Porch and many thanks to
all those whose correspondence I have enjoyed off-list.

Best Regards to all Galootdom for a pleasant Holiday Season and a Prosperous
New Year!

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Recent Bios FAQ