Scraping by
Scraps are good things; I mine my scrap barrel for gold frequently. But scrapes are a whole nother thing. For some reason, Ive been accident-prone lately in the form of…
Scraps are good things; I mine my scrap barrel for gold frequently. But scrapes are a whole nother thing.
For some reason, Ive been accident-prone lately in the form of numerous scrapes. I currently have wait a second while I count no fewer than 14 scrapes, scratches or scabbed-over small cuts on my hands and forearms. None are serious, but each involved at least some small amount of bloodletting. I hate that.
Although some are tool-related, I can honestly say that none were caused by actual tool use. Ive got a nice little gash on a knuckle, caused when I grazed the base of my drill press while using a bench brush. A scratch on the back of my left hand came from a drill bit I brushed against after laying my drill down on the assembly table. A super-sharp corner angle on a piece of oak left a small cut on my right hand when I got the piece off the lumber rack.
Others arent shop-related. My artillery reenactment group did a living history event on Veterans Day this past Thursday, and while firing the canon I brushed my forearm against the steel rim of the canons wheel hard enough to scrape skin. And while performing the lowly task of unloading groceries into the refrigerator the other day, I scraped a knuckle on one of those plastic door bins.
Visiting with family over the weekend, my sister noted that refrigerator injury (easily the largest of the 14 current ones) and asked what I did in the shop to get it. The assumption being that since Im a woodworker, then Ive obviously been busy in the shop from the look of my hands and arms.
Thats to be expected, I guess, as woodworkers are constantly getting minor scrapes and dings. It goes so much with the job that Ive often heard small injuries like this taunted as badges of honor.
Well, I dont need no stinkin badges.
Till next time,
A.J.

A.J. Hamler is the former editor of Woodshop News and Woodcraft Magazine. He's currently a freelance woodworking writer/editor, which is another way of stating self-employed. When he's not writing or in the shop, he enjoys science fiction, gourmet cooking and Civil War reenacting, but not at the same time.