An unusual Saturday…..no Aikido, a pending storm, and trying to get my head together for Sunday services that may not happen. In fact one, Penniac, has already seen the writing that appears to be on the wall and has cancelled worship for tomorrow. The problem, if it is one, in situations like this is that by the time late Saturday rolls around everything is ready for the morning. It kind of leaves me all dressed up and nowhere to go. But that’s the way of the road. As I said, an unusual Saturday.
I took a few minutes this afternoon to do a little preparing for my first of three afternoons at the New Brunswick College of Craft & Design that happens this Thursday. The past two or three years have seen me spend an afternoon or morning with Mike Cote’s (supposed to be an accent acute over the ‘e’ but I don’t know how to make the computer do it) history of typography class. This year we are expanding it to three afternoons — two at the college and one hear at the studio.
This year, the students are going to get their hands dirty in a hands-on block cutting and printing exercise. So, in preparation I have had to glue some linoleum down to some MDF board — a messy job at the best of times, and this was not the best of times because of my cutting corners with the construction adhesive I used. I should have spent the extra dollar or so per tube and used the LePages product — much less frustration and time and, when all was said and done it would have saved me money. Will I ever learn???
I had already glued a couple of pieces earlier in the week and couldn’t find the rest of my MDF pieces. I looked everywhere and couldn’t remember what I did with them. Then this morning I happened to catch a glimpse of a corner underneath Gerty’s makeshift bed on the table by the window. You can see it at the top of the picture — the blue blanket. Anyway, I was able to get four more glued up and weighted down under the nipping press.It’s a great little rig for this purpose. Now all I have to do is cut a couple of them up into the sizes the students will be using. That will be a job for early in the week — good Lord willing and I survive shovelling out after this storm.