The following sounds a lot like an advertisement/testimonial. And it kind of is, but it's also an look at some of the folks who live in my county -- and maybe in Elizabeth's Marshall County too.
Back in 1978 when my younger son was about six months old (not two, as the album caption says), my husband and his father signed up for a week-long wood-working class with some folks we'd recently met. Drew and Louise Langsner lived (and still live) at the other end of our county, about a forty-five minute drive from our farm. Though I had little interest in woodworking, I was suffering from a serious case of cabin fever and insisted that I'd like to go too. Fortunately my mother-in-law was willing to stay at our house and look after our five year old, so off John and Jack and Justin and I went for a week at Country Workshops. It was the first year of classes at the Langsner farm.
The experience was wonderful! A week of calm and craft, of beautiful surroundings, interesting people and wonderful food. Justin (still nursing - a 'tittie baby' as some say around here) was a calm, laid back infant, and I was able to carve a spoon and a dough bowl along with the rest of the class. We became good friends with our hosts and over the course of the years have watched them build their log home, expand their gardens, and put together an amazing curriculum for wood crafters and country/nature lovers.
I can't recommend a more pleasant way to spend a week -- and you come home with a new skill and a fine example of your own handicraft.
5 comments:
I followed your link to Bo Parker's blog and liked the blog post on your books. Glad he got past the adverbs!
I'm looking forward to meeting you at Bouchercon and will definietly be at your panal, but hope we run into each other somether time so we can visit.
Caryn St.Clair
Hey, Caryn!
Bo and I have exchanged some friendly emails but I didn't know he was going to do a post-- and such a nice one!
I'll look for you at the panel! And I'll be at the Mystery News table in the bookroom on Friday from 3 to 4 and in the Hospitality room Sat. morning from 9 to 10. Would love to visit!
Vicki..........this post wasn't an ending, as such, but demonstrates the open and optimistic view of the world (and some of the people in it) that authors incapable of appreciating the "happy-sappy" ending are never able to accept. Maybe that old tempting fate by being happy is involved, but it is a downer! I do know enough history and life to be aware of the icky, scary, and depressing stuff, but also realize that this life is limited, so i will continue to look for the good, and especially books that offer at least a modicum of....well, bad sentence, but you know what I mean!
Hey, Susan -- I know what you mean. I'm not a Don't Worry, Be Happy' sort of person for I do worry. But once I've decided what I can usefully do about a given situation, I do it and then hand the rest over to Whatever or Whomever and get on with enjoying life.
Vicki -- while you are off speaking, I thought I would read a few of your older posts that I was unfamiliar with. The Country Workshop was warm and informative. Plan to read more from your archives in the future
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