I remember being totally caught up once. Back in 1986. It was the best 15 minutes of my life.

Ever since then, I’ve been playing an ever-maddening game of catch up at work, at home, in the shop. Yup, even there!

Remember waaaay back in March, when I started talking about building some dresser top valets for my nephews? Yeah, about that…

I got sidetracked with an important project for my coworker. And, I had the start of hurricane season. And, the little health thingy…

OK, enough of that. It is now time to get out and build my first dresser top valet, and I had a blast working on it this weekend.  I had milled up some walnut for these projects back in April, and the boards have been sitting since then, just waiting patiently for me to get off my butt and into the shop. That’s just what I did, carefully cutting the pieces to size and marking them per the plan. I have got to tell you, it was fun being out in the shop again, working at the bench making a pile of wood into a project.   One thing about the plan I am using is that it’s a router-heavy plan, allowing me a lot of time to use the router table. These MicroJig Push Blocks helped to make the job a whole lot easier, and a ton safer, as I cut the rabbets and dadoes necessary to put the pieces together. With some Bruce Springsteen on the shop stereo, I was in the groove – so to speak. I was able to get all of the pieces in place, and noticed that everything was going to plan. And, when the time came to glue the piece together, I felt that familiar nervousness – had I thought everything through?

Well, you bet I did.  The piece came together nicely, with the base of the case already glued up and good to go.

I have been mothering over my supply of walnut because I am getting close to the end of what I have milled, so I will be carefully using it to ensure it can make it all the way.