rod
~ Elite 1000 Member ~
First, dear colleagues, an explanation of my near silence since last May 10:
I have posted only a word or two on the forums, since departing for what was to be a few months in Europe, starting with my Scottish homeland.
The hoped for agenda: to complete the folding of my Scottish workshop, catch up with friends and colleagues shortchanged in recent visits, a lot of walking and wandering in the north, thence down through England, and on to the Continent, on a flexible agenda, trusting I could perhaps visit friends, engraving colleagues, flute makers and players.
That did not happen.
In short, the renter of our wee Highland cottage, had a meltdown, attributed to serious mental depression, he became a ‘hoarder’, and pretty well trashed the cottage. I abandoned my above plan, immediate action was called for. Chris Norman flew over and lent a very helpful hand doing heavy lifting with me for four days. Focusing like a laser on the cottage rescue, I had to serve notice, concurrently removing eight van loads of junk and refuse, finally revealing the four walls of the dwelling in its full state of decay and neglect. Getting to that stage was a miracle in itself. A welcomed second miracle came about that led to the next door neighbours in the village buying the cottage, as is. It is being nicely restored, as I write. We are so pleased that the new owners, who have lived next door ( search online the Scottish village of Fordyce, near Banff) for 20 years, know everything very well, and are kindred spirits.
It took two and a half months to oversee all of this. I based myself in a farm steading above the town of Dunkeld, just along the road from the home of my singer friend, Dougie McLean. The farm steading is owned by my colleague, Hamish Moore, piper and pipe maker. His son, Fin Moore, is an equally talented player and maker. They have restored the steading, to allow two independent workshops. My flutemaking tools have been based at the steading since moving from my Nairn workshop of some 25 years. The loft above the steading made a comfortable camp site. Hamish has done a great job in the conversion.
Settling my tools with others, included being in touch with our forum colleague, Jo (artemiss) who is near Exeter, England. We wrote and talked on the phone, and I was planning to visit her workshop, but time ran out. Jo had a notion to make a second engraving bench, for teaching, in her studio. I donated my Scottish based Gravermax, and a good ball vise to her worthy cause. It felt good that it will go on being used within Jo’s shop, quite a privilege, she is a very fine artist/engraver, as we all know.
With the cottage sale finalized, I could have continued with my original plan of wandering, but other considerations back home took me across the Atlantic once more, first to Iceland, then to Vancouver, and inland to the Okanagon Lakes of B C, to meet my wife, Kathleen. Together once more, we had a good week with my elder daughter, grandson and family, then back to Mendocino. Shortly thereafter, my adventuring wife set out for Africa with her sisters, to safari in Botswana and neibouring African countries. I stayed home, did the dishes, then went off to do some music gigs, and got back into my flute making work.
My apologies to friends and colleagues, whom I led to anticipate that I would be in their neighbourhood!
Health and well being have remained good all this time, except for a left shoulder, injured while moving cast iron piano frames out of the cottage. This injury is not healing and I may be stuck with it, but I can still work. Only yesterday, our new grandson, now 14 months, sat with me at my engraving bench, disdaining any air-assist tools, he went straight for my collection of six small hammers, delighting in the musical ringing notes he could produce when beating on a steel anvil. At this stage of his life he appears to prefer hammer and chisel techniques!
My wife, Kathleen, and I were part of the extended clan gathering of some 20 young and old family members spanning three generations, all making merry, and it good heart. I am blessed to have married into the clan of some wonderful in-laws, as has our daughter, Katrina, so all was merry and bright this Yuletide.
As we come to the last day of the year, a day we Scots call ‘Hogmanay’, I trust that many of you have similar stories, blessed with similar good fortune and good cheer.
The tradition in Scotland, most common in small towns and villages, is to go ‘first footing’, equipped with your ‘nere-day’ bottle, usually a suitably curved hip flask. Yes, first footing is done on foot … (just as well). It is important that the first foot, over the threshold after midnight tonight, be made by a dark haired well-wisher. Why? Probably lost in antiquity, but now that the Vikings came to raid and stayed to trade in the 800's A D, marrying the dark haired Celts, we have many red haired families in Scotland. All five of us siblings were once red haired, like my mother. So, what if the first-footer is a red head? Custom dictates that fair headed first-footers must come across the threshold with something dark. A lump of coal was the object of choice, and near at hand, unless your house was heated by peat (turf). Songs are sung, drams are drunk, poems recited, and on it would go sometimes till the day dawned.
As for New Year resolutions, I am hoping to make less flutes, instead turn more wood bowls, keep up my engraving on the flutes I will make, and take some enjoyable time to rebuild jigs and fixtures around my shop. What about you?
And what kind of a world lies before us as we enter 2015? Hard to say. Certainly, knowledge is cumulative. Science, applied in equal measure, both to support human beings lead a life of worth for all, at the same time refining ways to keep an upper hand at new ways of destroying whatever nations are regarded as their enemies. All of that seems to go on just as before. Add to that, every nation/tradition/tribe/cultural group/venerated ancient sacred scripture follower appears convinced that our own ways are correct, and the thousands of other ways are clearly wrong. I have yet to reach that level of confident objectivity. It does look like human nature rarely changes, and it is we non-rational humans who use and apply the fruits of new knowledge and new scientific applications? On such topics, the writings of the gentle and generous John Gray (moral philosopher/critic of global economics) are well grounded, and persuasive. No finger pointing is intended here, be it right wing versus left wing, church goer versus humanist, one nation versus another, etc. My interest is to look at what we humans are up to as 2015 starts, and can we be a match for the risk that life is. Since I asked this question a year ago, we, and all creatures, great and small, have been sweeping through new, unknown space, at some 150,000 miles an hour ( 66,000 mph round our own star, the Sun, on one vector, and at the same time, on the solar system's journey round the Milky Way Galaxy). We are participants on a grand adventure, mostly journeying at the back of the bus, holding tenaciously to old ideas, trusting that someone is up front at the wheel. I look forward to hearing from anyone who can re-write this paragraph in a more enlightened and persuasive way that works for all of us. I am insufficient to the task, yet the journey is compelling, is it not?
Tonight can be a wonderful opportunity to raise a glass to all of humankind, and all creatures great and small.
Before Robert Burns’ 'Auld Lang Syne' swept the world with its fine human sentiments, in the 1600’s Scotland would end an evening of comradeship by singing “The Parting Glass”. It first appeared in the Skene Manuscript, but was sung as early as 1603. The song is beloved also in Ireland, and by all who love comradeship. For my ear, none do it better that Canada’s "Wailin’ Jennys”.
Let us lift our glass and toast each other, as they lead us in song, and while we do that, let us remember Robert Burn’s line…
'O wad the lord, the giftie gie us, tae see oorsels, as ither’s see us’.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q4egb2gpIg4
I hope to add a picasa photo link in the next day of two.
Nollaig chridheil agus bliadhna mhath ùr
Goodnight, and joy be with you all!
Rod
I have posted only a word or two on the forums, since departing for what was to be a few months in Europe, starting with my Scottish homeland.
The hoped for agenda: to complete the folding of my Scottish workshop, catch up with friends and colleagues shortchanged in recent visits, a lot of walking and wandering in the north, thence down through England, and on to the Continent, on a flexible agenda, trusting I could perhaps visit friends, engraving colleagues, flute makers and players.
That did not happen.
In short, the renter of our wee Highland cottage, had a meltdown, attributed to serious mental depression, he became a ‘hoarder’, and pretty well trashed the cottage. I abandoned my above plan, immediate action was called for. Chris Norman flew over and lent a very helpful hand doing heavy lifting with me for four days. Focusing like a laser on the cottage rescue, I had to serve notice, concurrently removing eight van loads of junk and refuse, finally revealing the four walls of the dwelling in its full state of decay and neglect. Getting to that stage was a miracle in itself. A welcomed second miracle came about that led to the next door neighbours in the village buying the cottage, as is. It is being nicely restored, as I write. We are so pleased that the new owners, who have lived next door ( search online the Scottish village of Fordyce, near Banff) for 20 years, know everything very well, and are kindred spirits.
It took two and a half months to oversee all of this. I based myself in a farm steading above the town of Dunkeld, just along the road from the home of my singer friend, Dougie McLean. The farm steading is owned by my colleague, Hamish Moore, piper and pipe maker. His son, Fin Moore, is an equally talented player and maker. They have restored the steading, to allow two independent workshops. My flutemaking tools have been based at the steading since moving from my Nairn workshop of some 25 years. The loft above the steading made a comfortable camp site. Hamish has done a great job in the conversion.
Settling my tools with others, included being in touch with our forum colleague, Jo (artemiss) who is near Exeter, England. We wrote and talked on the phone, and I was planning to visit her workshop, but time ran out. Jo had a notion to make a second engraving bench, for teaching, in her studio. I donated my Scottish based Gravermax, and a good ball vise to her worthy cause. It felt good that it will go on being used within Jo’s shop, quite a privilege, she is a very fine artist/engraver, as we all know.
With the cottage sale finalized, I could have continued with my original plan of wandering, but other considerations back home took me across the Atlantic once more, first to Iceland, then to Vancouver, and inland to the Okanagon Lakes of B C, to meet my wife, Kathleen. Together once more, we had a good week with my elder daughter, grandson and family, then back to Mendocino. Shortly thereafter, my adventuring wife set out for Africa with her sisters, to safari in Botswana and neibouring African countries. I stayed home, did the dishes, then went off to do some music gigs, and got back into my flute making work.
My apologies to friends and colleagues, whom I led to anticipate that I would be in their neighbourhood!
Health and well being have remained good all this time, except for a left shoulder, injured while moving cast iron piano frames out of the cottage. This injury is not healing and I may be stuck with it, but I can still work. Only yesterday, our new grandson, now 14 months, sat with me at my engraving bench, disdaining any air-assist tools, he went straight for my collection of six small hammers, delighting in the musical ringing notes he could produce when beating on a steel anvil. At this stage of his life he appears to prefer hammer and chisel techniques!
My wife, Kathleen, and I were part of the extended clan gathering of some 20 young and old family members spanning three generations, all making merry, and it good heart. I am blessed to have married into the clan of some wonderful in-laws, as has our daughter, Katrina, so all was merry and bright this Yuletide.
As we come to the last day of the year, a day we Scots call ‘Hogmanay’, I trust that many of you have similar stories, blessed with similar good fortune and good cheer.
The tradition in Scotland, most common in small towns and villages, is to go ‘first footing’, equipped with your ‘nere-day’ bottle, usually a suitably curved hip flask. Yes, first footing is done on foot … (just as well). It is important that the first foot, over the threshold after midnight tonight, be made by a dark haired well-wisher. Why? Probably lost in antiquity, but now that the Vikings came to raid and stayed to trade in the 800's A D, marrying the dark haired Celts, we have many red haired families in Scotland. All five of us siblings were once red haired, like my mother. So, what if the first-footer is a red head? Custom dictates that fair headed first-footers must come across the threshold with something dark. A lump of coal was the object of choice, and near at hand, unless your house was heated by peat (turf). Songs are sung, drams are drunk, poems recited, and on it would go sometimes till the day dawned.
As for New Year resolutions, I am hoping to make less flutes, instead turn more wood bowls, keep up my engraving on the flutes I will make, and take some enjoyable time to rebuild jigs and fixtures around my shop. What about you?
And what kind of a world lies before us as we enter 2015? Hard to say. Certainly, knowledge is cumulative. Science, applied in equal measure, both to support human beings lead a life of worth for all, at the same time refining ways to keep an upper hand at new ways of destroying whatever nations are regarded as their enemies. All of that seems to go on just as before. Add to that, every nation/tradition/tribe/cultural group/venerated ancient sacred scripture follower appears convinced that our own ways are correct, and the thousands of other ways are clearly wrong. I have yet to reach that level of confident objectivity. It does look like human nature rarely changes, and it is we non-rational humans who use and apply the fruits of new knowledge and new scientific applications? On such topics, the writings of the gentle and generous John Gray (moral philosopher/critic of global economics) are well grounded, and persuasive. No finger pointing is intended here, be it right wing versus left wing, church goer versus humanist, one nation versus another, etc. My interest is to look at what we humans are up to as 2015 starts, and can we be a match for the risk that life is. Since I asked this question a year ago, we, and all creatures, great and small, have been sweeping through new, unknown space, at some 150,000 miles an hour ( 66,000 mph round our own star, the Sun, on one vector, and at the same time, on the solar system's journey round the Milky Way Galaxy). We are participants on a grand adventure, mostly journeying at the back of the bus, holding tenaciously to old ideas, trusting that someone is up front at the wheel. I look forward to hearing from anyone who can re-write this paragraph in a more enlightened and persuasive way that works for all of us. I am insufficient to the task, yet the journey is compelling, is it not?
Tonight can be a wonderful opportunity to raise a glass to all of humankind, and all creatures great and small.
Before Robert Burns’ 'Auld Lang Syne' swept the world with its fine human sentiments, in the 1600’s Scotland would end an evening of comradeship by singing “The Parting Glass”. It first appeared in the Skene Manuscript, but was sung as early as 1603. The song is beloved also in Ireland, and by all who love comradeship. For my ear, none do it better that Canada’s "Wailin’ Jennys”.
Let us lift our glass and toast each other, as they lead us in song, and while we do that, let us remember Robert Burn’s line…
'O wad the lord, the giftie gie us, tae see oorsels, as ither’s see us’.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q4egb2gpIg4
I hope to add a picasa photo link in the next day of two.
Nollaig chridheil agus bliadhna mhath ùr
Goodnight, and joy be with you all!
Rod
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