As a young boy I watched my Father, who was a cabinetmaker, create beautiful furniture out of planks of wood. I guess that's where I developed my interest in wood turning. To take an old piece of firewood and turn it into something useful gives me great satisfaction. No two pieces are alike. The wood, no matter how common and plain, is turned into beautiful specimens. I am amazed at the unique patterns in the wood grain and the smoothness of the wood. I can literally lose myself in this craft spending hours turning the "perfect" bowl. My biggest pleasure, though, is seeing the reaction when these are given as gifts. It makes me want to hurry down to my workshop and start my next project.