Grandfather

This is the elegy I wrote for my paternal grandfather on his passing....just thinking about him today.

I knew you only in the fullness

Of your days, the father of my father

With a stride to match your will

Unhindered by doubt or regret.

Your hands seemed eternal

Torn on fence posts

Crowned in cruel thorns

Always bigger than mine, those hands

No matter how big mine grew

Hands readied for rain, upturned in faith

Awaiting the promise of heaven

Fingers as roots, strong and gnarled

Grayed with time and the breaking of stone

Hands as strong as time.

Your voice mighty as mountains breaking

A billowing fiery tempest; alight in dry brush

Consuming all the holy rooms of your life

Seeking every opening, wanting a way in

To call the faithless to glory

I loved best your laughter

Low in the hollow of your throat;

A warm wind at dusk

Scented by tilled earth.

Grand father, you are an obstinate root

Deep in the land of our families;

Drawing strength from hidden pools,

Putting forth a flowering legacy.

21 Jump Street

This show has not aged well. However, it is worth watching until the 80's soundtrack becomes more than you can bear. Horrendous acting, poor writing...upside: Johnny Depp's first appearance.

Its the pick of the day at www.hulu.com

Kitschus Extremus!

Woodworking Footsteps...

Yesterday, I spent a couple of hours in the woodshop with Grayham, my nearly eight-year-old son.

He has been asking, for over a year, for a shelf unit to attach to his bunk bed. He needs the space to display his growing collection of Lego masterpieces, most of them Star Wars: Clone Wars related. He has been very patient, but recently his polite requests have increased in frequency. I had to take action.

So yesterday we took the measurements and discussed his requirements. Mostly it needs to accomodate his smaller models and have a back piece that he can customize with his sci-fi artwork. We spent two hours selecting and measuring wood, cutting it on the chop saw. I allowed him to make one cut, but did most of that cutting myself, while he laid out and marked the measurements.

With our pieces pre-cut we then decided it might be nice to have movable shelves, rather than fixed. To do this, we would have to drill a series of indexed holes in the side pieces to accomodate shelf pins. I have an acrylic index already, for use with a #6 drill. We carefully laid it all out with a square and ruler, mounted it on the drill press and got it all fired up.

Working with Grayham as he methodically pulled the drill lever 24 times was a real treat. He kept his eyes on the work, his mind on the depth gauge and his hands clear of danger areas. The end result was a finished piece that would have made a seasoned woodworker proud.

He then wanted to take a break and go for a walk in the crisp Autumn sunshine. Not wanting to push my luck on a job progressing well, I agreed. We will keep you posted as this project continues.

Creative Excitement

To all those that love good translations of fantasy to the large or small screen, two links:

The first is to an interview with Guillermo del Toro about the Hobbit:

http://www.totalfilm.com/features/guillermo-del-toro-on-making-the-hobbit/

As a director, del Toro is excellent and has made some really outstanding films (Hellboy 1&2, Pan's Labyrinth, The Devil's Backbone....) and teamed up with Peter Jackson producing. It's going to be great.

The second is to the current casting for George R.R. Martin's Song of Ice and Fire adaptation from HBO, due in 2010.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0944947/

This a majestic story of love, power, betrayal and lust. If HBO can make it with the same love and detail they put into Sopranos or Rome, it will be one to remember.

Google Wave Account Activated

My excellent friend, Erik just hooked me up with my Wave account. I am delving into it this afternoon. More on that later....