If you read this blog as a reflection of my status in life, one might believe that I’d dropped off the face of the earth. Such is not the case, however. I’ve been busy as always. A frantic August led to a frantic September which resolved into something all together different. It’s the middle of November, Thanksgiving is around the corner, Christmas is a month past that. The bike season has passed. I’m working less hours at the bike shop, which leaves more time for other things. Right now most of my time is taken up in a rebellion of torpidity. I’ve taken up a couple new projects. My girlfriend Taylor’s brother is a coder for a startup media blogging service called Jux. On this service I’ve begun a photo blog documenting my life for a year in a series of daily Self-Portraits. I’ve added it to the sidebar on this site, and it’s located here.
I built an enormous rack for my new commuter bike I scratched together for a few bucks just for the fun of it. It’s an early 80′s Bridgestone MB-1 that got dropped off at the shop as a donation. The rack ended up being a monstrous affair with a 12×19″ platform and some sharp curly-cues. The first utilitarian project that I did solely in my shop. It still hasn’t been finished, or painted, but it’s now on my daily rider so it’s very hard to take it off and take care of the finishing part of it. I’ve also been making pens, I just finished my second, and it is something that a serious amount of fun. There is a great accomplishment to taking raw materials and making something not only polished and shiny, but also well balanced supremely functional. In my case, I start with a hunk of burly wood, a stainless steel tube, and miscellaneous bits of raw aluminum, and the end product is a utensil that is a piece of art second.
I have a new project kicking around in my head after this seasons cider pressing. A pedal powered press. I have the means, do I have the motivation?
Hey Kina, I set up a link to your blog over at http://www.misekindustries.com.