About ten years ago, I began to do lathe work in earnest. I had several pieces sitting around the house, including one that what was the first of a series of pieces that became something of a signature style, the holy grail of every woodturner.

At the time, I considered it to be my best lathe work to date. We had some dear friends visiting about a week after it was completed, and they were enthusiastic about the turnings. I told them they could have one.

Fast forward to last week when I got an email explaining that she and her husband had come into some unexpected cash and they wanted to pay me for the piece. She asked what I would want for it, so I told her a similar piece sold at SOFA several years back for $850 and I got half. I reminded her that it was a gift, but she insisted, so I said I’d be happy to accept whatever they could afford.

A few days ago, a check for $500 arrived! Thought I’d seen it all …