Almost getting away from it all

It was to be a wonderful weekend away from it all. A chance to meet up with some of our friends, and participate in a mixed doubles bowling tournament in Williamsport, PA, home of the Little League Headquarters. We had a nice room, caught up with some of our bowling friends, and had a good meal and several good beers.
Waking up the following morning feeling quite rested, I turn to see Lois at work on her jewelry making. To add to this she has her laptop open and taking time to give her wrists a break from the tools, she is checking out her website, email, and following up on several jewelry blogs. My wonderful wife stated, "I knew that you would most likely sleep in, and I didn't want to wake you with the TV, so I kept myself busy trying a new pattern for a bracelet." I guess you can't beat that logic, and what is a guy to do? What else, but turn over, go back to sleep, and let her keep going. Anything to be supportive.

Getting Out the Next Edition

I must admit that I do admire my wife. She works hard at her business of being a title agent in her own company, then comes home and starts throwing herself into her jewelry obsession. For those not familiar with Lois' work, check out A Beaded Affair. When she is not busy designing, creating, or selling jewelry or jewelry making supplies she is managing a web site for fellow jewelers at Copper Wire Jewelers. She now has nearly 700 members. At this site she also has been creating an online magazine, I think she called it an E-zine or something similar, for the jewelers, now having put out the third edition. She has some creative help from her daughters Meredith and Dani, owners of Hot Glue Media, a website designing company. So where does that leave me?
I guess that I should be glad that she shows me what she is working on for the magazine, as she is putting out an edition about every three months. I do get to listen to her planning on when the next deadline is for pictures and articles, and when they have to be submitted. I get to hear the many oohs and aahs as she sees the jewelry pictures being submitted , or the delight in reading the articles she has received. I also get to overhear the many phone calls she has with her daughters as they try to keep up with the material coming in for publication, as well as the layouts of the pages, and wishing that the publication was extended for more time. So, I guess I am heavily involved after all.
What truly amazes me is that for all of her effort she is not charging anyone for the online publication. Nothing. There is not a fee to anyone to put pictures of their pieces of jewelry, nor for the ads that some have sent in. She has people that have contributed marvelous articles dealing with the making, marketing, and all aspects of jewelry.
What Can I say, but you have to admire someone as dedicated to her craft as Lois. Luckily, I get to brag about the woman I love.

Is that your tool or mine?

Like most men, I have a bunch of tools. A passage of manhood, you might say. Heck, some of them are still in their boxes. I swear I will learn to use that router some day, and every guy needs to have a belt sander. With my wife doing a lot of jewelry work, of course she needs tools. The other day she asked me if I had a dapping block? It bugged me that a) I didn't know what she was talking about, b) she had to tell me what it was and what she needed it for, and c) I did not have one.

I have loaned her several of my tools, and have to follow up on getting them back. Her complaint is that I leave tools all over the place. You never know when you will need a screwdriver, Vise-Grips, hammer, wrench, or nail setter, right? I just like to have them quickly available.

Ever since my wonderful wife began creating her marvelous jewelry, I have been supportive. At first she was interested in the gems, so I bought her as gifts all different types of scopes, weighing devices, magnifying visors with a cool light, tweezers, and other types of gadgets that I thought she would be interested in using.

She has taken over the back bedroom and has multiple work areas, though after all that she is frequently doing her work in the bedroom. I even put in a high def TV so that she could have entertainment while back there. I have built her a neat bin holder on wheels so that she could store her different beads, fittings and other whatchamaycallits she may need. There is a great vise with a vacuum bottom so that she could attach it where she needs it. To top it off, she has her photo studio set up in there, with a tripod from my photojournalist days and a photo cube with lights. All she would need is a fridge, microwave and a hot plate and I might not see her for weeks.

Having found myself at a nearby Harbor Freight on the way home from work today, I thought I would surprise my wife with a gift of the dapping block. I went in and asked one of the workers there where I could find one, and received the strangest look. He had no idea what I was talking about, and after consulting with several of his co-workers he told me that they did not have any dapping blocks of any size. I went back to my car to call my wife on the phone, asked her what size dapping block might she be interested in for her work. Lois informed me that she did not remember what project it was for, or what she was going to do with it, but thought it would be nice and a handy tool to have.

I believe the gulf between men and women is not as large as one might be led to believe. I plan on buying for myself a very large vise that will be mounted on my almost completed workbench in the garage, and that way I know that it will not be borrowed, along with my router and belt sander. If I can find those missing instructions for the bench then I can finish putting it together. Heck, it's been almost a year. But that is another blog.

The Jewelry Widower - Still Alive

Just a reassurance that after my first blog my fingers were not broken, nor any other bodily harm inflicted. There were a few fellow "J.W.'ers"(Jewelry Widowers) who have let themselves be known. I do not suffer alone, thank heavens!
How many of you have been involved with helping out with shows? I was volunteered to help set up for a recent show in Quakertown, PA. I am off from my job as a Registered Nurse every other weekend, so I normally look forward to my time off, even though there are other things that require my attention, such as mowing the grass, cinematic exposure (watching movies), and of course going to my computer to save the world from aliens, falling bricks, asteroids, etc. The show in Quakertown was on my weekend off, of course. It was a tedious setup, with the wind trying to knock over the tent and all of the displays. Luckily, I had created several containers with sand to tie to the tent, and also strapped down the dummy heads, (not mine) which my wife uses to display her fine necklaces. It was also necessary to arrange the setup so as nothing else would be blowing away, though I did comment that if people found her business cards down the street they might look for her. (There's your litterer, Officer)
As the people started wandering in, many had questions about the fine work that my wife had created. All I could do was stand and point to my wife and say, "You have to ask her." My fantastic spouse would then go into vivid details about her creations, explaining that it was all hand made, of natural gems, and silver or copper. There were no artificial stones or materials. Of course, hearing this several hundred times during the day can make you a little ear sore, but I did my best to tolerate it, being supportive of my wife. She would introduce herself to the hopefully-to-be customers, "Hi, I'm Lois." She would then be gracious and point to me and identify me as the husband. Not being a shy guy, I would introduce myself as "Manuel" which brought forth many a questioning stare, and would clarify with "Manuel Labor." A few still wandered away with head-shaking bewilderment.
An important lesson learned from doing previous show with my wife was to have a decent meal beforehand, and to make use of the facilities. Why, you may ask. Because no matter where the show is, your site will always be farthest from the port-a-potties, and by the time you finally get there they are 1) full, 2) there is a long line, 3) you are standing downwind, and 4) there is no place to wash your hands. Always carry hand sanitizer with you as part of your set-up gear.
It turned out to be a fair day, and at the end is the take down of all the equipment, storing it in containers, then loading it into the car. It is tiring and always such a relief to get that done. But the greatest feeling is when it's all done, we are packed up, and on the way home, my wonderful wife turns to me and says, "Thank you honey, I am glad you were here to help me, it would have been much harder without you."
What can you do at that point, but square up your shoulders, look her calmly in the eyes, and say, "That's okay dear, I was glad to help.

The Jewelry Widower

My wife makes jewelry. I am sure that there are many other “Jewelry Widowers/Widows” out there, and are faced with the same situations. Does your partner spend almost every free moment involved in the process of making jewelry? From the actual making of the items, to the photography of such items, and then putting them on the computer on their web pages.
I appreciate that my mate wants my opinion frequently about her artwork, and I do really mean art, but have you ever been in the middle of something requiring great concentration, ie; a football game in the final seconds, reading the great novel, or saving the world from asteroids when suddenly the newest creation is put in front of you for your comments? I find that I must pay close attention to the presented item, and also the questions asked. I do not want a sneak question coming up on me, such as “Does this necklace make me look a) too fat, b) too thin, or c) does it go with any other item that may be mentioned.
I like to think that I am very supportive of my wonderful wife, and am truly impressed with many of her beautiful creations. I have found that at times she will even listen to my input, for I have seen her make suggested alterations. There are times when I am sure her inquisition is purely perfunctory, as any comment I can make seems to be unheard. I was even informed that I was allowed to blog about this, and sothis is my first blog.
Considering that, if I am never heard from again, it is because I have been banished, or worse. There is always the great and universal "Husband’s Answer" to any question: “Yes dear, you’re right, I’m wrong, I’m sorry.”"