An interesting visit

[PennsyPlinker]

I get to meet all kinds of interesting people in my work. Today as I was walking out to prepare my trailer for a load of wood, an SUV with Virginia plates was pulling into my parking space. People stop in here from all over the US and Canada to say hello as they pass through. But they usually call at least an hour or so ahead of time.

As the vehicle came even with me, the man inside put down the window and asked me what kind of woodworking I did. Always in search of customers, I gave him the short rundown. He told me that he was up here hunting, and had been meaning to stop in for the past couple of years, but never seemed to get around to it. As soon as he said hunting, my ears perked up.

"So you're one of those gun guys, huh?"

"Oh yeah!" (with a big smile)

"So do you believe in all that 2nd Amendment stuff like keeping and bearing arms, and carrying guns for protection and all that?"

"Sure I do!"

At that point I pulled my jacket back to display my Sig Sauer riding on my hip and gave him a big smile back.

"Me too! Would you like to come in and see the shop?"

So he came into the shop, and I showed him around. It turns out he grew up just down the road about a mile from where we live, and used to hunt the fields that were part of the farm here. He moved to Virginia and worked for a while as a gunsmith at Williamsburg! Then he went out on his own. Next thing I know, I am pulling highly figured boards of walnut out of my stash, and he is pulling highly figured boards of walnut out of his truck so we can look at them together. Then he shows me a beautifully done 12 ga slug gun, complete with case hardened metalwork, figured walnut for the wood, and a falling block action. It was a beautiful piece, although he referred to it as a beater.

We talked about various gun issues both old and new, and then said goodbye to one another. He rightly assessed that if we were not careful, we could spend the whole day talking. But it was a high point in the day for me, and probably for the week. The other good point today was Mikey being kind enough to help me move 5500 lbs of maple in five chunks from my trailer to the field. But that is another story.

[gnbrotz]

The other good point today was Mikey being kind enough to help me move 5500 lbs of maple in five chunks from my trailer to the field. But that is another story.

I've often thought that I wished I lived closer to you. Today....not so much.

[PennsyPlinker]

I've often thought that I wished I lived closer to you. Today....not so much.

Yeah, Mikey intimated that he would be busy next time I called for help moving logs.