More workshops and camping!

Soon. I will be offering more Rhino workshops through the Bench here in good Old Rhody Rhode Island!  We are finally getting around to doing a Nerd hangout session (more news on that later).  This last week Liz and I took a couple days off of work to go glamping (I guess camping at a camp site is not real camping, according to Liz) 

The last time we went camping was about ten years ago.  We just packed all of our camping gear that we dutifully organized from our last trip not realizing that we were missing come crucial components like something the make coffee with, a frying pan or a tent big enough for two grown ass adults. Liz said: " the best thing about camping is the problem solving!"  I think I agree with her.  

I have included some highlights from the trip:

• Me being impatient with the coffee apparatus Liz cobbled together
• Cooking everything on a sheet-pan because we forgot our frying pan
• Suffering through the kid size tent we brought
• Our double dog bun situation
• The surprisingly empty Narraganset beach! (whoop whoop private beach party!)
• Whale bones
• Beers at the Whalers brewery (again no one was there! whoop whoop)
• And our fancy campsite (with RVs in the background)

While were there we went to the local museum which was mind blowing. It looked to have a fully functioning type setting studio including a type casting machine?  Also you could eat off the machines.  As far as I could tell they didn't have AC or heat so I am not exactly sure how they kept all these machines from rusting into the ground so I concluded they actually use all this stuff! I desperately wanted to see it all going.  With Covid the place was empty and all the windows and doors were open and the tours were self guided. They also had a blacksmithing shop but it was obviously staged and not in use. Unlike a letter press studio I can recognize when a metal studio is not in use.  

 

More progress in the studio

Things are buzzing in the studio.  We are getting geared up for our second big house project which is a large platform deck and shed.  I am secretly hoping to make a cozy outdoor hangout spot.  I think it is tough because we need to get permits and city hall has been hit and miss with permitting.  Also I hired a carpenter to help and he is BUSY.  Totally excited though.  

In the studio we hooked up the torch and realized that almost all of the o-rings on the tips were shot.  I found out the hard way and we almost didn't have a studio anymore.  Wha wha whaaa. Smelly burnt arm hair. 

When I went to replace them they basically all crumbled or snapped off.  I have to be honestly getting the o-rings has been difficult.  I went to four welding supply stores in town and none of them had them.  I am trying to shop locally as much as possible.  We have been trying to get our veggies and meats from local farms as well as shopping at the mom and pop hardware stores (recently one of said stores saved our bacon while camping, more on that later)

I have also been installing some LED shop lights and shelves. I also bought a fire cabinet which houses all of our chemicals. I have been wanting/needing one for years.  Having random cans of solvent and IPA floating around always made me nervous.  So now, all safe.  I am also going to install a fire extinguisher near the hood. 

I am getting excited to get back to using the space.  Right now I feel like I am using the space to fix the space.  Honestly We need to now start organizing things.  

Recently Liz and I went camping.....glamping..... 

We haven't been camping in over ten years. Let's just say that we need to plan a little more before we go camping again. I think we were a a lot smaller back then and we, for sure need a bigger tent.  Also we forgot our coffee pot.  That all being said we had a BLAST!

It has been amazing to spend more time with Liz.  I feel like I lost the last ten years of my life to my job so I have a lot of time to make up for!  I think we are going to schedule another camping trip for the fall!!

 

 

Ventilation install!

I installed the ventilation today.  It went a lot smoother than I thought it would.  I guess when you have the right tools for the right job things can go quickly.  As I mentioned in a previous post I bought a restaurant grade range hood.  I thought it was 1200 CFMS but it is more like 900 which I think is still plenty.  The hood itself weighs about fifty pounds hence the chain.  It is bolted to studs so the chain is just a safety precaution. I wouldn't want that thing falling.  

In a nutshell:

• I had Liz sit and pretend to solder
• I measured where her nose was and made the bottom lip of the hood end there.
• I found the studs and bolted a mounting board the length of the hood.  
• I then used heavy eye-hooks on the king-studs at the top of the wall. 
• I hung the hood via the chains and then carefully lifted it up, adding a board at time till I had it to the height I needed.  
• I then adjusted the chain and anchored the hood to the mounting board. 
• I marked the hole on the drywall and cut it out with a trim router (setting the depth to the thickness of the drywall)
• I then drilled a hole in the middle of the hole so I could do the same on the exterior clapboard.  
• I then used insulated flex hose and strap clamps to connect the hood to a stainless soffit  vent I found on amazon. 

Shed, microscope, ventilation and more

Everyday I find myself bouncing between many hard topics each time hitting an immovable object. More often than not it is a person whose beliefs don't align with my own. Not to go into too much detail but I haven't seen this much blatant racism/violence since I was a kid living in the south. People who I had known to be "good people" have revealed themselves as horrible humans. We are polarized as a country and everyday shocks me to my core.  

This is my new normal. ME: "Hey buddy how is it going?"  ASSHOLE: "Did you see those antifa fucks tore down another statue last night!?" ME: "What the fuck is wrong with you and why the fuck do you care!? Did you live there? Are you a person of color that has to look at that shit everyday!? Stop watching Fox News!" Inevitably, I find myself hoping that it is some twisted form of a joke because I don't want to give up on them as a human. But no. It is not. Some people are hot garbage. 

I have found it difficult to make anything so this platform is allowing me to evidence the non-jewelry "work" that I will call my "craft therapy". It has now become the only thing, besides Liz that can walk me back from that edge. I feel privileged that I have this as an outlet and hope, in the future, to build a practice that supports positive change. 

Now that we have converted our garage to a studio we have to build a shed (more on that in a future post). We have downsized quite a bit from our old studio. We went from 400 square feet to a little under 200 square feet. I have been trying to find ways to save space. 

So here is what I have done so far:  First, I put my computer on an arm so it can float independently from the table it was on. Doing this has freed up that table, which is on wheels and is now a mobile workbench.  

I have also converted my microscope to a HD LCD screen/microscope/camera/light. I will probably sell my old setup because this has both saved me a boatload of money and space. I had to 3D print a quick bracket to make it fit the articulating arm. It took about an hour to design and print. The camera is wireless, battery powered and uses a micro SD to record video and take pictures. I have so much room on the bench now and I don't have to keep taking my glasses off and on to use a microscope to set stones! 

We are also working on installing ventilation. After weighing multiple options I have decided to go with kitchen style range hood. After measuring, I bought the best one that fits our space. Not too big, not too small, just the perfect size. I want it to be streamlined and clean.