Climbing that mountain

 Sometimes the journey of climbing the mountain is more overwhelming when looking up. But once you start you just need focus on just one step at time or better yet a 1/4 mile at a time. 

As you climb the air becomes more restrictive but you adjust and power through with a slower pace or pause here or there to see the view from where you are. Often you realize holy shit look how far I’ve made it already. This process repeats itself and once you make it to the top you savor the moment. 

Now this isn’t Mount Everest, but this isn’t your first mountain you climbed and battled through. 

This is similar to owning a business and there is nothing wrong with finding the next mountain to climb that is bigger and more challenging. And there is nothing wrong with saying this was a hell of a ride but now the next mountain I want to be part of team and climb this mountain together. 

So whatever choice you make just know it’s okay to join a team and it’s okay to tackle that new mountain together. This team could be the people you hire or the team you join. But sooner or later reflect back on how easy those small mountains were and how life catches up to you and how life is flying by.

Sometimes life throws you lemons 🍋 and you make lemonade. But the story doesn’t end there, sometimes someone has vodka and it’s time to sit back and savor the skills gained and work doing what you love with a lot less headaches.

This is where I am in life. I am a maker first who loves working with his hands. But houses were my first love and working on them is my true passion. I am happy to have learned all the skills from high end furniture work and I use these skills daily. 

But in my life there has been many bumps in the road and I needed to look in the mirror and realize there is more to life than work. That this American dream I thought isn’t what it’s cracked up to be. 

So here I am happier than ever before because I made the decision to make what I want for me, and to work with a team and climb that mountain with more guarantees.

Sorry we’re closed! Permanently

 The hardest decision in my career was to close shop to the public and not take on work.

As I reflect back to this still new decision I must say it was the best decision I made! This sounds crazy for some folks who think they know me, but I made a choice to live, to have a life, to work less, to better my health and to reduce stress.

Don’t get me wrong I love and miss my shop. I love all my tools, working behind my bench and working from my tool chest. 

What I don’t miss is all the phone calls, all the emails of inquiry, the contracts, the shop help or the lack of productivity in 99 percent of anyone I hired. I hated chasing money! I especially disliked dealing with scumbag contractors! Or the people who don’t pay and make every excuse in the book. Yet they are still out there spending money they don’t have. 

What many people don’t realize is that repair work has one speed, and that one speed is needed for 40 hours. When you don’t produce at that speed you lose money. This effort or lack thereof can make or break you in a small business over time. This work isn’t hgtv. The work isn’t fancy. The abuse on your body and health is real. 

But this whole make or break methodology is what I lived by. The whole hustle and grind. The dirty hands clean money. The do what you love and never work a day in your life. Better yet my favorite statement was, I work half days (12 hours).  I can’t believe I was proud to work 12 hour days 6 days a week for years! 

Now all these statements are great motivators at some point in your life, but they can also swallow you up and make you realize life has passed you by. 

I have realized these past few years that many of us shouldn’t work for ourselves, including myself. I am a great employee and I hustle and grind for my employer. The biggest difference is that I hustle and grind at work for 8 hours a day and I’m done. I work 40 hours a week and I’m done. It’s amazing and I love it. 

For me this new work flow is a luxury and a blessing. Especially after 18 years working for myself. This new life of not being a slave to my trade allows me to make what I want, how I want it, and no one to answer to other than myself. 

There is some inner peace with this approach and I truly look forward to making a house full of furniture that my family and I can enjoy and pass on.

So while I’m sorry we’re closed. In reality I’m so happy to walk away and go back to doing what I love the most! But this time I’m living a beautiful peaceful life as well. 

Cheers! 

 

Never imagined!

 

These last 5 years have been a roller coaster  and surely many of you feel the same way. Life is significantly different for me, with the loss of  Master Phil Lowe and the loss of my mother. I can say the death of these two  have truly effected me and changed my life. 

As I reflect back these 5 years I am reminded of  the last phone conversation I had with Master Lowe. The conversation went as so; Fred, sorry for your loss. I love you so much. Life has a way to throw you a curveball. Listen, don’t work as much as I did. Don’t think legacy is all that matters. Family matters more. I’m proud of you. I love you. We talk again soon. 

End of conversation. 

This of course brought back memories of the last conversation I had face to face with my mother. My mother TERESA gave me a great hug/kiss and said, be safe we don’t know what Covid is yet and I am so scared. She cried in my arms and of course I cried. We said I love you and I was off. 

 I lost my mother a month or so later to Covid. Covid took her from us in just 3 days at the hospital. We couldn’t see her or feel her. The vision of our last video call with her is an image I can’t forget.

As I write this the tears are flowing. The anger and sadness is still there and this feels like this event just happened. 

Now don’t get me wrong I screwed up plenty before and after the loss of my heroes. I tried to drown myself with work to keep my mind busy. I failed miserably. But no one seemed to truly care. All they cared about was where is my stuff. And this is understandable now as I reflect back, but during this time period I was depressed, angry, and lost. While my pain isn’t an excuse, it’s the truth.

Fast forward to Mother’s Day 2022. My amazing wife and mother in law sat me down for what basically feels like an intervention. They both shared their love for me as a partner and a son. They saw me fading away and being a shell of myself.  And what can I say but agree.

After this conversation I lead myself down roads of reflection, stubbornness, sadness, and exploration. This in turn lead me to the biggest decision of my career. 

It was time to visit the doctor, to close down shop for the public and take a job. More on this decision and my process at a later date. But for now I can tell you I never dreamed to be where I am today. 

The Contracting Handbook Podcast

 Hello all!

It’s been a while! It’s amazing how life has changed in so many ways. My work flow has changed and my business has changed as well. But more about that later as I try to get back to writing again and sharing my business decisions. I hope to share in the near future how and why everything changed, my failures in running a business, my regrets, and how the passing of ones in life has effected me. 

But today I wanted to share an episode recording I participated in for the Contractor Handbook. Here is a link: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-contracting-handbook-builder-trades-construction/id1565698306?i=1000608157932

In this episode you start to learn how life has changed and how I have changed. I hope you can listen and enjoy the episode. 

My passion for the craft is back, which is something I had lost these past few years. I’m very excited again for the future and my craft.

Until next time.

Cheers! 

Remembrance for Master Lowe

 

My last semester at the Furniture Institute of Massachusetts (FIM) was in 2006. Unfortunately, I reached a place where I realized I was not able to pay for my last semester of school, despite working full time while also going to school. I was faced with making what felt like an impossible decision: pack up and return home, meaning I would not graduate; or, become homeless, so I could use my rent money towards FIM. I approached Phil, hoping we could come up with a payment plan so I could remain his student. I believe that Phil saw the stress in my eyes and my passion for remaining at FIM. Shortly thereafter, he called me into his office and he told me that he wanted me to finish. He made me an offer I could never refuse, and for which I will always be grateful. Phil asked me to work for him, generously putting 50% of every job on which I worked towards my balance for the semester. Phil made a personal sacrifice in not having my tuition up front, in order to continue fostering my love for woodworking. Phil Lowe was a master of his craft, an outstanding teacher, and above all, a truly generous man. 

 

Weatherizing an entry door.

Last few years many clients have been inquiring if there is anything that can be done to help seal the gaps around their entry doors. The reason for this request is due to the lost of heat and cold coming in and escaping from the home. Unfortunately there isn't many great options out there in the market but that changed once I noticed an article in Fine Homebuilding and an episode on This Old House. 

Let me introduce to you the corning tool that fits in a corner and cuts a groove for plastic membranes of a variety diameters to fill almost all gaps around the door. All the information regarding tooling and membranes can be found at conservation technologies and the company is located in Connecticut. Below you will find a few images of the recent install I did for a client. The process takes about 15-20 mins to do but the investment is well over $500 dollars for all the membrane sizes and tooling.  In the end its worth knowing that you can seal your entry door properly and save money. 

Cleaning Wood Work

A common question asked is what would I recommend to clean woodwork? My response for years is start with Dawn soap and warm water, wipe the item with a cotton t-shirt type material. If you need to scrub the item, then I would use a series of scotch-brite starting at grey and work your way to red and then green for extra coarse.

Another product I recommend for areas really dirty that is going to get stripped is Dirtex. Just follow the directions on the box and use scotch-brite. Its amazing how well Dirtex works.  Once down scrubbing wipe everything down, let the area dry for a day, and then continue with the refinishing process.

I hope this helps.


Cheers!