Wood 101: Circular Saw

The following tips are helpful for safely and skillfully using a circular saw.  I feel that knowing how to operate your tools, what purposes they have and safety basics are the most important aspect of woodworking   You will gain experience over time but must start with safe practices.  If not, you will gain many scars and possibly lose limbs instead of gaining skill in your woodworking endeavors!

WEAR YOUR SAFETY GLASSES!

Safety goggles might make you “look funny” for a minute but that is WAY than to not being able to look because you blinded yourself while sawing some plywood!!  Eye Protection is a must when working with a circular saw as chips fly and can obscure your vision and/or lodge themselves in your eye.  Ouch!  Also, you never know when gremlins might show up and start throwing things at you! 

“Binge on Me”

Lyrics By MalibuNinja

~Verse 1~

At times you

Lift me up high

Make me feel aglow

Most times you

Make me feel beneath

You ~ Lower than low

I wish I could

Reflect it back

Feel what I feel

But I refuse

Can’t be that Evil

It’s My Achilles’ heel

~~CHORUS~~

You crave me  ***   On impulse

Then shove me   ***   Away ~ Repulsed

Binge on me   ***   Like an addict

Then purge me   ***   In a panic

You're oh so   ***   Lascivious

Relish in your   ***   Wickedness

As to your   ***   Intentions

I am complete-   ***   Ly Oblivious

Don't allow Expectations to Ruin You *Wiz-Dumb Pai*

So many people go through life attempting to control every aspect of their day to day lives.  They plan everything in their minds and expect their plans to become reality.  They expect what they consider to be perfection.  Even if they don't expect exact perfection, they do expect close to it.  Through their predictions they are sure that events will go smoothly for them.  Predicting every outcome so all will be right in their world! 

These people predict what will happen, how it will happen and how they will react to whatever it is.  Then they spend their day manipulating everything and everyone around them in an attempt to produce their desired outcome.  When whatever it is doesn't turn out exactly how they believed it would... well, they become enraged or depressed.

 

When you set expectations you are throwing a metaphorical wrench into the engine of your life. 

Our Earth is an Amazingly Beautiful Planet!!!

Dear Mankind **WIZ-DUMB PAI**

“True success is achieved when you stop trying to empress others and start believing in yourself” –Johnie Pai

Dear Mankind,

You always want what you can't have. You think you need more then you truly need to sustain life. Apparently you can't tell the difference between needs and wants. Your priorities consist of you and all your needs/wants, nothing of substance and no one of importance. You always want more, more than you already possess, more than all the money in the world could buy. Your gluttonous display of excess is not enough and no matter how many expensive things you collect none of it will ever be enough for you to be satisfied.

Zennie, The Cool Face

Zennie, The Cool Face - Representing Peace, Love, Balance, Unity & Happiness

The Cool Face Design is a collaborative effort between myself and Johnie Pai. Johnie came up with the idea of a face using the yin yang and peace sign as eyes and somehow incorporating a heart and smile.  I made the concept a reality and then painted it on a canvas jacket for him (shown below).

"Being a Loner is Usually Best"

The golden rule has been trashed

All alone I stand in protest

Face it, the world is full of unrest

Wars, Genocide, Hatred manifest

Evil prevails, Goodness suppressed

Malevolence rules, humans digressed

Seems a little hopeless I must confess

~~~~~~~~~CHORUS~~~~~~~~~~~~

Being a loner is usually best

Evil fools you, lies expressed

Intentions you misunderstood

Becoming a victim of theft

All your innocence they took

Being a loner is almost always best

Alone is so much easier to digest

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Flashbacks to Vid-Idiot Adolescence

WARNING: Old School NES Electric Guitar May Induce Flashbacks to Vid-Idiot Adolescent Days!

NES console (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

I grew up playing the original Nintendo Entertainment System, if I remember correctly it debuted the year I turned 6.  When I was allowed to play I would keep playing until my thumbs ached and blistered or I feel asleep sitting up with a controller in my hand. Back then we didn't have the luxury of saving our game and picking it up where we left off later...  So I learned to play video games marathon style, pausing only for bathroom breaks and to eat quicker than I ever did under any other circumstances.