News & Sneak Peeks:

Friday Roundup from the DustyNewt Workshop 06/28/2024

Jun 28, 2024

Temp: Currently 78. High of 92 today 😎
Humidity: 5 on the “Soup” scale. (1=light broth, 5=thick chowder)
Today’s Playlist: The Meters, Chambers Brothers, Taj Mahal
Conditions: Hot, Sweet and Sticky!
Estimated Travel Time: 20 seconds
Food: Sausage, toast and eggs
Coffee Level: 1/2 Tank

On the Workbench…

Walnut wood chopsticks — Walnut Wood Name Chopsticks

Another large batch of walnut name chopsticks for a cyber security firm in North Las Vegas. These can be ordered here in my GOIMAGINE shop or here in my Etsy shop. They have been hand-shaped and sanded to 600 grit, ready for the “snick and poke”* and oil bath. See the finished product below in my Sneak Peek slideshow.

*Snick and Poke” - is my term for the final sanding process involving sliding 600 grit paper (sounds like snick) through the saw kerfs of the letters and holes are poked with an awl and/or riffler file to to remove tiny debris particles.

Orders are increasing as summer progresses, as it should. Embracing the Florida heat in my un-air-conditioned workshop. Acceptance is the only way to deal with it. Sadly, it will likely be the coolest summer I’ll ever see again.

We have a pair of hawks patrolling our yard this week. The squirrels seem unfazed and concentrate on stealing the sunflower seeds and peanuts we put out for songbirds.

A pair of hawks look on as a squirrel gets it eat on. — *A pair of hawks look on as a squirrel gets it “eat” on.*

The Crinum lilies (Firecrackers) are ready for Independence Day.

Working for ourselves from home gives us the opportunity to save a tremendous amount on meals. How we get 6 meals out of a $7.50 rotisserie “Mojo” chicken from Publix… saving up to $40.00 over the “picking up something on the way home” method.

First night (2 meals) - Time involved 30 minutes - Split the cooked “Mojo” chicken in half lengthwise. Then separate the breast from the leg quarter. Reheat for 15 minutes. Julie gets the breast, me the back end. Serve with a choice of slaw, salad, microwave steamed veggie, biscuit or corn muffin for a complete supper.
Second night (2 meals) - Time involved 30 minutes - Bone the second half of the chicken, putting the breast meat (cut up) in a bowl with chopped celery, onion, bacon bits, grapes, raisins or craisins, a cut-up apple, pecans, mayo and mustard, and desired herbs and spices for a fabulous chicken salad. Serve with a toasted ciabatta roll, bread or crackers.
Third night (2 meals) - Total time involved 30 minutes - Simmer the bones and skin with an onion a stalk of celery, garlic cloves (minced) and your preferred spices in a saucepan for a couple hours. We use an Italian spice blend. Strain and return the broth to the pot. Add the remaining chicken meat (dark, cut up) and a little canned broth if needed. Bring to a boil. Add some mixed veggies and rice, taters cut small, or small broken up linguini and turn down to a slow simmer for an hour. Serve with leftover cornbread muffins or your favorite crackers.

With a little forethought and basic ingredients, you can complete all 6 meals for less than $20.00. They are nutritional, delicious and comforting meals. Get creative and experiment. 😋 Mangia!

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Sneak Peeks

Thanks for checking in. Here’s a view of this week’s Etsy orders.

For customers, this should ease your mind that your order is quite important to me and being attended to, not sitting on a clipboard or in the to-do pile. Also, if your order is being sent as a gift to a recipient at another address, you get to see it before they do.

For subscribers, this will give you an idea of the physical things I create and ship worldwide. They keep me sane and help me find my peace.

Every order is carved individually by hand, in the order that they are received. Some weeks are busier than others. I usually carve and ship within 3 to 5 business days.

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