@Snappo I can't wait to walk to the mailbox tomorrow morning and see if there really is something waiting for me down in the box!
It's almost embarrassing to talk about stuff like winning a half ounce of free cannabis from a medical marijiana dispensary in a recreational legal state because they drew my punch card for my free quarter ounce out of the goldfish bowl for the weekly drawing
, but I like to think that it might just be my place to be an evangelist to share the good news of what I believe is to come for everyone else in the not too distant future.
And back to the point: there is something better than free weed that is making me happy right now. I finished my fine metal smithing class yesterday, have the basic tools and equipment I need to set up my home studio, and the confidence to finally begin showing off some of the work I've been doing over the past few months to bring some really neat new vaping accessories to the community. We've got artisans working in glass and wood, and elecrical gizmos, but I'm hoping that there might be a little room for accessories and gear made using locally sourced sustainable resources and fine metals. Starting tomorrow, I'll be working on turning my working prototypes into pieces for production. I'm so very excited to have this new set of skills that I believe could make a positive impact of this community, as well as possibly help my friends with medical needs to more effectivly, or easily, or pleasantly use their medication. If you are reading this and have ever thought "I wish I had a little tool shaped like ________ that I could use for ___________ with my __________ vaporizer", I'd love to hear what you want and see if I can make something beautiful to make your vaping ritual easier and more pleasant.
Here are my first two completed pieces from the class: a silver lapis pendant for my wife and a "gardening wedding ring" for myself which is a half size larger for easy hand washing when fingers swell from tool use, activity, or summer heat. It has a light and slightly irregular hand hammered finish intended to hide any scratches, dings, or other damage that is sure to come when I work my community garden plots this summer. Her pendant has some flaws that are not worth excessive work to fix (slightly ragged edge from having to remove and reset the stone a second time), as you can only polish a turd to be so shiny, and I made a few student mistakes that were necessary learning opportunities to help me understand how to make the metal work for me instead of against me.