A Thank You to a Very Kind Man.

At the onset of my venture into woodworking, I have relied heavily on the wonderful people at WoodCentral.com.  This is, by far, the best woodworking forum on the internet.  There is an actual community, and just genuinely good people.  Although I owe thanks to a lot of people, recently Wiley Horne has delivered my daughter Emry (the one of my four girls who is interested in woodworking) and I an unbelievable act of kindness.

A few weeks ago, Wiley contacted me and asked if I had any need of a Stanley 45 or a cutting gauge.  I have actually been looking at getting my hands on both for some time now, so I asked him how much he wanted for them.  He responded that he wanted to give them to us.  Tonight, the box arrived, and Emry, Tave and I opened it.  I had Dash, my 16 year old, photograph it.  This is what was in the box:

I really need to lay off the cookies.  That belly is getting quite rotund.  In nautical terms, I am growing a bulbous bow.  

In total, Wiley sent us the Stanley 45, 23 cutters for it, a morticing gauge, a cutting gauge, a ten inch brace and an eight inch brace.  They are all beautiful tools, and I can't say enough how appreciative we are for them.  The only way I know to repay Wiley is to promise him that these tools will be loved and used for generations to come.  Thank you, my friend, thank you.  

While Dash was photographing us opening the box, she took this gem of a self portrait as a joke.  The least I could do to reward her magnificent sense of humor is to immortalize her joke on the internet.  Bon Appetit!