While mia_mcdavid was at choir practice this morning I did some woodwork, then went out on various errands. I went to Kinko’s to print the hard copy of colgaffneyis December Newsletter, then to the Post Office to weigh it and buy stamps, and to Office Depot to buy more envelopes. All in blowing snow with poor visibility. A couple other errands and I was home not much after noon. Rather stressful driving even though I never went beyond the Roseville City limits. Afterwards I immediately went out again to shovel (and I do mean shovel–no Toros in this house) snow. After that I did some prep (soaking beans, chopping vegetables) for the chili we will be serving after colgaffneyis staff meeting here tomorrow.

In the afternoon I got colgaffneyis newsletter stuffed in envelopes, addressed, sealed and stamped, then joined mia_mcdavid for a nap. I got up a little after 4, and went out to shovel snow again. Then some more woodwork while Mia worked on the chili. The shop is cold now–I wore my fall jacket while I worked. However, I was still able to get a lot done. The step stool has been assembled. I need to trim the plugs over the screw holes, then some do planing and sanding to clean it up, and it will be ready for finishing. I have not decided whether or not I will paint it.

I made several mistakes while working on this, and they are visible on anything more than a cursory examination. Still, the final product should look OK and will be thoroughly usable. In any case, the only way to get better is practice.

A problem for one activity can be an opportunity for another. With the shop at refrigerator temperatures we now have a very large second refrigerator. As for freezer space–the back porch is covered with snow. All very handy for holiday entertainment. The chili is now cooling down on the porch. I will move it to the workshop shortly–we do not want it to freeze.