Rather than a conventional card, I made this for Sargie. My design is less than perfect, but the thought is there.

February 14, 2017 - Tuesday
30 degrees/partly cloudy/windy
Pentoga Road

Happy Valentine's Day! What a wonderful time to pause and celebrate the simple act of love. Sargie and I have vowed to keep our relationship new and enter each day as though it's our first together. Sargie's off today and I'm looking forward to starting our new lives (again) together on this Valentine's Day.  I love you sweetheart. Thank you for loving me.

Dad was a huge romantic and made sure Mom always felt special on Valentine's Day. Even when I was young and money was in short supply, Dad made sure Mom received a dozen red roses along with a box of chocolates. 

When Dad passed away over a decade ago, I made a mental promise to him that I'd make sure Mom felt special each and every Valentine's Day, that she would be reminded how much Dad loved and still loves her with all his heart. Each year, Mom receives a dozen red roses along with a box of candy. Though Dad isn't able to give them to her, they are from him, none-the-less. 

Page Two:

Andy sent a picture of Ivy and her mother featured in an ad for one of the health care facilities in northern Maine. 

Someday, we'll be able to say that we knew Ivy back when she was just one of the little people, no pun intended.

Our niece, Ashley, sent along a couple of pictures of Baby Piper and Brielle taking a tubby. Ashley came up with the idea to place a clothes basket in the tub so that Piper can sit upright.

There's not nearly as much room when big sister, Brielle, joins her.



After arriving home from my morning walk, I headed to the shop to start the heater. One problem, it wouldn't start.

I was about to give up and go to town to buy another when I decided to look on the internet for a shop manual and schematics. 

It's said a person can find anything online if he's willing to spend the time looking. It took an hour, plus another hour to fix the valve, but in the end, I saved fifty dollars by repairing the old heater.



I finished the bunny puzzle Monday afternoon.

It will be mailed out later today along with the alphabet/worm puzzle. 

The rest of the afternoon was spent finishing Taylor's pencil holder.

I slimmed the body quite a bit, plus made the inside substantially larger.

The biggest challenge was cutting the monogrammed letter on the scroll saw, sanding and painting, then permanently mounting it.

I did a final sanding, waxing, and buffing of the container. The grain from the white birch is so pretty that I wanted to emphasize it as much as possible.

Mississippi Brother Garry sent a couple of pictures of sassafras wood he's turning. Since the wood is still green, he's roughly hollowed out six pieces, then will place them in paper sacks full of shavings for a year to cure.

To do otherwise could result in cracking and breaking as the wood loses moisture.

With his bigger lathe, Garry's able to turn much larger wood than I can.

Sargie's off today and I imagine it will be a lazy affair on Pentoga Road. Valentine's Day is a big deal around here so we'll do something special, possibly enjoy dinner out just to celebrate us. 

Meanwhile, it's time to get this uploaded and pour a cup of coffee.

After all, a man's work is never done.

So are the tales from Pentoga Road...

You think I make a mess at the lathe? Mississippi Brother Garry has to carry his shavings out in five gallon buckets.