h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

These are two films I watched this morning between 7am and 8am.


Firstly a wonder film of the close-up work of the fingers playing the zirther. The wonderful theme from the 'Third Man' played by Anton Karas. This is one of my favourite YouTube films. And I also love the slight hiss..and sort of rumble at times..and greeny grey black&white.

http://www.youtube.com/user/66Barnswell?feature=mhee#p/f/12/r8jN1treRKQ

For the actual film Carol Reed used a clever variation of the close-up..


Secondly.

Making dovetail joints. My favourite woodwork joint. I can't play the zither..but I can make dovetail joints.

This is about the best film of it I could find on YouTube. And yes it's worth a watch IMO.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ix3mphsKGJg&feature=related


But the totally blind dovetail joint..is really probably my true favourite. The actual dovetails in the fully blind are invisible from the exterior..but you know they are in there..

But I digress. This film shows the construction of the common or garden ones...

Hi, am writing back with the theme playing in another window.

I love opening people's journals, like surprise presents, and yours this morning is just that, a real treat! Thanks for sharing.

I shared my house for many years with a cabinet maker, and you're correct about the sort of skill that is hidden away. I think youtube is amazing, only this morning I looked up the recipe for alioli after reading a journal on garlic ( Sol's btw) and there was so much not only to read, but to watch 'how'. I think youtube must be a huge factor in teaching skills to people.

Yeah making dovetails is very satisfying.. And the way your chisel works differently with different woods. Not done any in years..but the memory..especially the feeling thing with the chisel is still very immediate in my mind. It's so easy to make a mess of them if you are to heavy with the chisel. You have to cares the wood when you are paring it down.

**

But tomorrow I'm get down to some proper writing in a journal..some text not like those 'texts' on my name tag earlier in the month..but a bit of prose..

I remember you talked about dovetails in another journal, so I had to check the tube out

It turns out so beautifully, especially using different wood materials.

I can't watch this from work, so I'll have to give it a whirl when I get home. My interest is piqued.

Deb

I really ought to make a film of myself making 'dovetail joints'

And I'd go for the full McCoy of the 'fully blind ones'

I've got a 'workmate' which acts as a vice and loads of good woodwork tools..hardly used in years..but I can still sharpen my chisels on a stone..they are very blunt at present. (I worked for a few months in a furniture restorer's shop. As I was a new minion..one day the boss gave me an old chisel..that was totally messed up..and said,

"I want you to spend the next few hours making that good as new by hand on the stone...doing that is also good for the soul."

He was quite a Romantic on the quiet.

You have to re-establish the angle on the end of the chisel..that's what takes the time..then re-establish the actual cutting blade angle.

Holding the chisel by hand, at the right angle on the stone takes a lot of skill, chi, and chutzpah.

You can do it with a machine in a few minutes of course...

I learnt a lot from that guy.

If it weren't for the sound, I would sharpen all my knives a lot more often. The grating sound of the stone really gets on my nerves, but the sharpening is indeed a peaceful thing to do.

It's going to sound blood thirsty for me to say this, but there is somethingd deeply satisfying about a really sharp edge. Knives, scissors, gardening tools especially. I have never used a chisel, so can't speak about that, but I can tell you how frustrating it is not to be able to prune a bush or cut a branch off a tree properly because the tools are blunt. Dangerous too.

I understand completely.
My daughter has a Japanese choir leader, and she was trying to explain the beauty of a sharp sword - but most of the girls just thought of the weapon aspect...

Milla you don't need a stone for knives..if you mean kitchen ones?

You do that with a long sharpener thing..one of these type of things..

http://sp.life123.com/bm.pix/knife-sharpener.s600x600.jpg

All professional chefs use these. Everytime you go to use the knife..you just give it a brisk few strokes.it's rather fun actually..and it stays razor sharp.

My chopping skills for veg improved no end with proper sharp knives..

And yeah same with woodwork..you can't do it by hand unless the blade is razor sharp.

And it gets quite zen.when the tool is working just as it should..you can be more gentle and precise with a chisel.

I love all this stuff..it's just using good tools as intended.

Planing wood is great as well with a hand plane.

Anyone watched Tarrantino's, 'Kill Bill' vol 1?

All about women and Japanese swords..great film.

He made that dovetail joint look so easy. I'm really, really rubbish at anything in the slightest bit fiddly and admire craft skills in others. But that looked like even I could do it.

Deb