Gerald Gudmundson
Member
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- 1
When my wife and I were first married, I was attending a university and we were living in Student Married housing near campus. I bought a few basic auto and woodworking tools and placed them in a small tool chest with a cabinet and a removable tool box. When I wanted to make something, I hauled the needed tools out onto the balcony of the apartment and went to work (sometimes assembly or other functions took place on the kitchen table).
Our first home after graduating from university had only a carport, so all tools were stored in the basement. By this time I had a bench top 10" table saw, various small saws, hammers, chisels, and clamps. When I wanted to create a masterpiece, I hauled the tools up the stairs from the basement, and out onto the carport, then back to the basement. I could not create as much as I desired, since time was precious, and it took a long time for set up and cleanup. Sometimes, it just wasn't worth the effort unless I had a dedicated Saturday. I continued over the course of 22 years to acquire tools and store them away for some future dream shop.
In 2006, we began to search for a "final" home. The last of our 6 children was a Senior in High School, and my wife had never really liked the split-entry home we were living in. We went looking for a rambler style home. Someone had told us, you'll probably never be able to afford your dream home, so use the 80/20 rule. Find a home where you really like 80% and can live with the other 20%. I told my wife, I wanted an enclosed garage with room for my tools. She wanted enough household space to host the extended family. We found what we wanted in 2007. It had a carport with space for two cars, a long driveway with space for four more, and an RV pad with space for 3 cars. Lots of room to park cars when the family came to visit, lots of bedrooms, an adequate family room, and a nice yard for the grandchildren to play in. It also had a detached 2-car garage. I claimed it as my shop. It is my "man-cave" as well. I finally had a place for all those tools. (In fact, I have to keep reorganizing it to accommodate the "new" tools). I have some tools I haven't even unpacked yet.
I just purchased a wood turning lathe. It has a 12" x 33" capacity, and I am in the process of assembling it. (I had to finish 2 cubby-hole cabinets for my wife before she would "let" me unpack the lathe). And, I need to reorganize the shop again. I will upload a picture when it is accomplished. Hopefully before I buy another tool and have to start over... You never know, with each new project comes a new tool they say.
Our first home after graduating from university had only a carport, so all tools were stored in the basement. By this time I had a bench top 10" table saw, various small saws, hammers, chisels, and clamps. When I wanted to create a masterpiece, I hauled the tools up the stairs from the basement, and out onto the carport, then back to the basement. I could not create as much as I desired, since time was precious, and it took a long time for set up and cleanup. Sometimes, it just wasn't worth the effort unless I had a dedicated Saturday. I continued over the course of 22 years to acquire tools and store them away for some future dream shop.
In 2006, we began to search for a "final" home. The last of our 6 children was a Senior in High School, and my wife had never really liked the split-entry home we were living in. We went looking for a rambler style home. Someone had told us, you'll probably never be able to afford your dream home, so use the 80/20 rule. Find a home where you really like 80% and can live with the other 20%. I told my wife, I wanted an enclosed garage with room for my tools. She wanted enough household space to host the extended family. We found what we wanted in 2007. It had a carport with space for two cars, a long driveway with space for four more, and an RV pad with space for 3 cars. Lots of room to park cars when the family came to visit, lots of bedrooms, an adequate family room, and a nice yard for the grandchildren to play in. It also had a detached 2-car garage. I claimed it as my shop. It is my "man-cave" as well. I finally had a place for all those tools. (In fact, I have to keep reorganizing it to accommodate the "new" tools). I have some tools I haven't even unpacked yet.
I just purchased a wood turning lathe. It has a 12" x 33" capacity, and I am in the process of assembling it. (I had to finish 2 cubby-hole cabinets for my wife before she would "let" me unpack the lathe). And, I need to reorganize the shop again. I will upload a picture when it is accomplished. Hopefully before I buy another tool and have to start over... You never know, with each new project comes a new tool they say.
