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184451 Joe Jerkins <jerkinsj@s...> 2008‑11‑06 Updated Bio
It=E2=80=99s been over 10 years so I figured I=E2=80=99d update my
biography. I=E2=80=99m 44 years old, married to a wonderful SWMBO and
blessed with a 9 year old son. We live in a 95 year old Edwardian house
in San Francisco so I get to practice a bit of =E2=80=9Cliving
history=E2=80=9D re-enactment doing repairs. My wife understands my
obsession with tools old and rusty as she has similar proclivity for the
textile arts. My son likes glue, saws, hammers and paint (but knows not
to paint tools). When I'm not making wood shavings, futzing with old
iron or thinking about it, I work for Genentech. Currently I=E2=80=99m
in Clinical Quality Assurance which is a part of the process research
and development group. As I stated in my 1998 bio, I have been
"woodworking" most of my life ever since I =E2=80=9Cfound=E2=80=9D Dad's
coping saw, hammer and the scrap wood pile. That was about the extent of
his tools and since he didn=E2=80=99t use them much, I had pretty much
free reign. I started by cutting dinosaurs out of 1/4" plywood (1st
grade) and moved up to tree forts, soapbox derby cars, RC planes, etc...
I=E2=80=99ve always had an innate desire to do things myself. I
don=E2=80=99t know if it=E2=80=99s because I=E2=80=99m just not willing
to pay others for something I think I could do better myself or due to a
strong need to be (somewhat) self-reliant. Woodworking was put on hold
during and after college mainly due to lack of space for it in small
apartments and frequent moves. I did manage to pick up some skills and
money during the summer by working as a laborer on industrial
construction projects (footings, foundations, floors, mason tending and
basic grunt).

In 1997, my wife and I bought a flat with a storage area in the garage.
This storage area was immediately converted to my first wood shop. It
was very small and we didn=E2=80=99t have much money so I looked for
quieter and cheaper means of working wood. I somehow found Patrick Leach
on the net and ordered some Stanleys (low angle block, #5, & #8). I
justified the purchase to SWMBO by saying how much cheaper and safer
this was to purchasing a p*w*r j*int*r. I also read some books by
Michael Dunbar. I found the joy of tuned planes to be intoxicating and
highly addictive. I began rapidly sliding down that slippery slope and
have only picked up speed.

Since than I have attended auctions, cruised flea markets and *bay,
taken a couple of classes and accumulated a great set of (ahem) user
tools. Every room in our house (including the garage) has at least one
piece of furniture I=E2=80=99ve built. My favorite things to build are
furniture, but I really like projects that require me to learn a new
skill and maybe even acquire a new tool. It started with hand cut
dovetails, moved to hammer veneering and I=E2=80=99m now teaching myself
to turn and carve. My favorite furniture styles tend to be federal and
18th century American furniture; however, my current projects get their
inspiration from a bit further in the past (and my other passion -
history and archaeology). For the past 1 year or so, I=E2=80=99ve been
building a chair based on one found in Queen Hatshepsut=E2=80=99s tomb
in Egypt. I also have been trying my hand at relief carving (gargoyles
and Assyrian scenes). Warmest wishes to the best group on the web! Joe
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