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Interviewed by ethnotraveler about one of my favourite photo that i recently shot in Chennai on New Year
you can read the article here
NOTE: INFORMATION HAS BEEN RECEIVED ON 4/21/13 WHICH CALLS THE VERACITY OF THIS ACCOUNT INTO QUESTION.
Jo Quasney is a survivor of Hurricane Katrina. Of French Creole heritage, Quasney is a native of New Orleans who was living alone in her house in the eighth ward when the hurricane struck on August 29, 2005. Quasney bred birds and had no way of transporting or finding shelter for the birds when New Orleans residents were advised to evacuate so she stuck it out. Her neighborhood began to flood after she heard an explosion that she attributes to a Halliburton company oil barge breaking through a levee. (For a discussion on the cause of the breech, see en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ING_4727)
A third of her roof was blown off but she managed to escape upstairs from the rising waters. To this day she has nightmares from hearing her birds drowning on the floor below. She had bottles of water but no food for three days and recalls most vividly the silence around her, hearing only her own breathing, a silence so profound it was deafening. From time to time she waved, in vain, to a helicopter passing overhead.
After the third day, she noticed that the waters had receded sufficiently for her to exit the house. Throwing her briefcase and a small bag of clothes into a recycling bin, she left the house and, turning around to look back, then knew in her heart she would probably not see her home again.
For more than ten hours she pushed her bin through the floodwaters to the Superdome where she endured three horrific days of body odor, people out of control and authorities treating the hurricane victims like prisoners.
She left and started walking along Highway 10 and says she was halfway to Baton Rouge when she got picked up by a relief worker. There was no place to stay in Baton Rouge so she wound up for another three days at the Cajun Dome in Lafayette, Louisiana which was not much better than the Superdome but she at least got a chance to shower.
Authorities suggested that she relocate to Arkansas but she was determined to come to Philadelphia, where she had studied years before. For three days she sat in a chair in the Greyhound bus station waiting for a bus that could get her to Atlanta from where she get her connection north.
Upon arriving in Philadelphia, a very kindly hotel manager at a hotel she was acquainted with from before converted the $68 nightly charge to $60 for the week upon learning of she had survived Katrina.
After a couple days of recuperating, the manager knocked at her door and told her to go to the Wanamaker School. The people there were incredible, she says- firefighters, police and Housing Authority personnel volunteering their off-time. She received food stamps, help filling out FEMA and other forms, a $300 gift card from the Red Cross and relocation assistance. She still maintains friendships with people she met there.
Finally, Quasney decided to accept placement at the Emlen Arms, a Philadelphia Housing Authority building. In her small, but very cozy apartment, she has the company of Ziggy, a parrot rescued from a crack house, a parakeet and a cat. She has amassed a sizable little collection of ceramic elephants, like the one she had in New Orleans, and numerous pothos plants adorn her small living room.
She loves Mardi Gras so that’s what she misses most about New Orleans but she continues the tradition here. She decorates a tree in green and gold, the Mardi Gras colors, and bakes King cakes for the community room. Friends and neighbors usually cajole her into making jambalaya and gumbo.
As she has become settled in her new home, she is now the one regularly helping newly entering residents who often arrive with few possessions. Of her Emlen Arms sanctuary, Quasney says, “They’ll have to carry me out of here feet first.”
Ruby Wax was born 19th April, 1953, Ruby Wachs in Evanston, Illinois, the daughter of Jewish parents who left Austria in 1939 because of the Nazi threat. She later majored in psychology at the University of California, Berkeley.
Ruby Wax said I couldn't stand being a nobody. America put too much value on being tall and blonde. So I used laughter to make people take notice.
Ruby Wax came to England in 1977 and Ive been grateful ever since. (OK so I wasnt even born then but I make up for it now!)
Ruby always wanted to be famous, so decided to become an actress. She didn't get in to RADA but was awarded a place at the Scottish equivalent, before later joining the Royal Shakespeare Company alongside Helen Mirren, getting all the wench parts.
I really could never find my niche. I was a terrible actress, I couldn't sing, I couldn't do characters, I couldn't do an English accent and I lived in England, so I was narrowing it down'
She started off writing for Not the Nine O Clock News.
She met French and Saunders at a party and worked alongside them a number of times, on television in Happy Families, at charity events such as Hysteria and notably the sitcom Girls on Top. Apparently meant to be a kind of female Young Ones, French, Saunders and Wax all co-starred and co-wrote this ITV series. Ruby played Shelley Dupont, a stereotypically loud American dying for a career in show business. Not a huge hit, Girls on Top nevertheless gave the trio the chance to find their feet in comedy.
Ruby eventually got a chat show after drunkenly interviewing Michael Grade (who was head of Channel 4 at the time) in a tent at the Edinburgh festival. She subsequently made a range of programmes (most featuring her name in the title!) but as I have only seen a selection I can only write about the ones I know
In the 1988 show Ruby's Celebrity Bash, Ruby 'interviewed' stars including Joanna Lumley, Patricia Hodge and Felicity Kendall. More staged and rehearsed than Rubys more recent interviews, they included acted bits and prepared one-liners to the cameras. But although the interviews are set up they are still hilarious. Ruby breaks into Joanna Lumley's house - smashing windows and then hiding behind her sofas!! She gets thrown out but returns later with a ladder and calls up into the window, before climbing up and breaking in again. Joanna Lumley's character is very much a premonition of Patsy, who ends up in a mental institution and has cupboards filled with alcohol! The show was very much pre-Abfab, and an early and unusual role for Joanna in comedy at the time. Ruby Wax later became the script editor for Absolutely Fabulous, coming up with many of the one-liners.
In 1992 Ruby did a stand-up comedy show at the Wimbledon Theatre, now available on video as Wax Acts. Written by Ruby, it consists of amusing monologue and observational comedy. Her description of childbirth is almost enough to put you off for life, pain-wise she says, 'it's like sitting on the Eiffel tower and spinning' - ouch indeed!
Ruby's Health Quest (1995) followed Ruby as she went in search of alternative medicines, advice and treatments in aid of seeking perfect health. Several years ago she took a BBC director's course, people will get sick of me and my ego will have to be removed, but I'd still like to express my view of the world.
Ruby Wax has experienced episodes of depression for most of her life, but it wasn't until she finally checked into a clinic, that she realised how widespread mental health problems are: "It's so common, it could be anyone. The trouble is, nobody wants to talk about it. And that makes everything worse."
Divorce twice and is currently married to television producer and director Ed Bye, who produces some of the series of her long time friends and working partners, Dawn French and Jennifer Saunders. Wax and Bye have three children together, daughters Marina and Madeline, and one son, Max.
Mayor Eric Adams visits the memorial for Brandon Hendricks and does walk and talk with NBC News' Lester Holt in the Bronx on Thursday, July 7, 2022. Michael Appleton/Mayoral Photography Office
Gorgeous Nimrat Khaira Interview in Tashan Da Peg – Gorgeous Nimrat Khaira Punjabi Singer Inerview in Tashan Da Peg. She is Very Talented Punjabi Singer and Winner of Voice Punjab Season 3 (2013) Nimrat Khaira Was Born on 22 December 1992. Nimrat Khaira Mother Goverment Teacher and Father R...
punjabitoday.com/news/gorgeous-nimrat-khaira-interview-ta...
I have several escape routes out of the job I'm currently doing. I applied last week for a 3 year secondment to the Boundary Commission for Wales, dealing with electoral boundary reviews.
Today I had this letter telling me I've got an interview for the job! Here's hoping I get it as I know it would make me feel so much happier than I do now.
via Painters' Table - Contemporary Art Magazine: Daily Painting Links on Artist Blogs, Painting Blogs and Art Websites ift.tt/2aCnSaz
Melanie Bray, act.; "Rosie" © Linda Dawn Hammond/ IndyFoto 2022. Photographed in Graffiti Alley, Toronto, Canada.
Portrait of Gail Maurice, by Artist Kent Monkman, "Shining Stars" series in "Being Legendary" exhibit, at the ROM (Royal Ontario Museum) © IndyFoto 2022
“Rosie”
Review and Interview
By Linda Dawn Hammond
“Rosie” is the first feature film of Metis director and writer, Gail Maurice, who is also known as an actor in the TV series, “Trickster”. She self identifies as a member of the LGBTQ+ community and is one of a small number of less than 2000 people who can still speak Michif, a now endangered language which was spoken by the Metis people of Canada in the 19th and 20th centuries. It is a primarily a combination of French nouns and Cree verbs, and originated in the 1800s from contact between Francophone traders and Cree and Ojibwe First Nations people. The descendants of these French and First Nations unions became known as Metis.
“Rosie” appears on the surface to be a simple, joyous film about an engaging trio of social misfits who, with the help of an orphan child, find emotional support and resolution in a chosen family of their own creation. Its underlying messages are far more complex and will speak to those aware of the terrible legacy of Canada’s Residential Schools and the “Sixties Scoop,” which adversely affected the lives of thousands of indigenous people and their descendants.
It is set in 1980s Montreal, which in “Rosie” is a world categorized by poverty and insecurity for those who don’t conform to society’s standards and norms. The character of “Fred”, (Mélanie Bray) is lovingly portrayed as a somewhat irresponsible Francophone artist who lives a precarious existence on the constant edge of poverty, eviction and unemployment. Her best friends are Flo (Constant Bernard) and Mo (Alex Trahan), who are flamboyant and decidedly non-gender conforming. Their alternative lifestyles are suddenly disrupted by the initially unwelcome arrival of a homeless six year old girl, Rosie (Keris Hope Hill). Through her enthusiastic, sweet presence, she teaches the adults about responsibility but also to live their dreams. At the time of shooting Keris had never acted before, but she is charming and effective in the part. The Kanien'kehá:ka girl from the Six Nations of the Grand River plays the role of an indigenous child left orphaned after the death of her mother. (It is perplexing that she was not included in Tiff’s roster of 2022 Rising Stars, but she was mentioned in CBC’s recent list of young, talented stars.)
In the film, “Rosie”, social services search for a blood relative to take custody of Rosie, an orphaned English speaking girl in Montreal. All they can uncover is a “sister” of the deceased mother, a Francophone woman who had been once been placed in the same adoptive home. They have no records of the whereabouts of any genetic relatives due to the willful incompetence of officials during the “Sixties Scoop”, when tens of thousands of children, primarily indigenous, were forcibly removed from their families and placed in predominantly white foster homes. These stolen children were not encouraged to remain in contact with their families or know of their heritage. In many cases they were intentionally sent far away to achieve this separation.
It is a story close to the heart of the director on many levels. Maurice experienced a similar painful disruption in her own family. Whereas she as the eldest child was fortunate to be taken in and raised by her Metis grandmother, who taught her Michif and the ways of their people, a younger brother and sister were removed in the “Sixties Scoop” and disappeared. It is only recently that the whereabouts of Gail’s brother was discovered.
In Quebec, language is always part of the conversation, but in Montreal in particular, bilingualism has been an important factor in breaching any linguistic or cultural divides. The little orphaned girl in the story is indigenous and anglophone, and although she finds herself in a world which is French speaking and white, there are no divides as people choose to learn from each other, and even introduce a third language, Cree.
Interview
I sat down with Rosie’s director, Gail Maurice, and her partner, actor Mélanie Bray, to discuss the film.
GM (Gail Maurice):
I was asked about the 80s, how there was so much violence against gay culture, queer culture. So they asked my perspective, because Rosie is not really (violent), I mean, there's a couple moments in the film that showed or insinuated it. But it's not about that, even though a couple of broadcasters told me they wanted me to add that element, the violence towards the gay people, towards Flo and Mo, and I tried to do that, and it just went to a dark place. And I thought to myself, that's not the story I want to tell. That's not my experience in the ‘80s, of being gay. What my experience was, basically, was what “Rosie” is, and it was a time of where I was finding out about being gay and gay culture, and it was also new and wild and beautiful. And, just extravagant, you know. And so, that's why I wrote a story from Rosie's perspective, because she is able to see the world with that wide eyed wonder. And that's exactly how I was when I came out, and that's the story I wanted to tell. I wanted to tell a story of chosen family, of love, belonging, being it wasn't a story about, gay culture, per se. What I’d like to say is, it's an indigenous story with an indigenous perspective, told through the eyes of a little indigenous girl who happens to be part of this scene, and during a period of time (the 80s) that is really important to me, that was, coming out. So that's the story I wanted to tell. I came out I was 18. My first year university. It was a magical time, in Saskatoon, in a little bar called Numbers.
LDH (Linda Dawn Hammond)
Can you talk about how the “60s scoop” affected you personally?
GM:
I was able to find my brother. Part of the effect of the “60s scoop” is loss of culture and identity. So when I found him, I did a little short (film) called, “Little Indians. “ We're not close. I've seen him maybe three times, and in a very different environment. He grew up in the white home, with a white family and on a farm. He said he played baseball with the little Indians. You know, so he took himself out and didn't see himself as an Indian. I know he knows he's Metis. It's hard. It's a loss, and I have a sister out there somewhere…
LDH:
You were able to live with your grandma, and there you learned a language that's so rare. Michif.
GM:
Michif. And yeah, I wrote a trilingual film, because I wanted to be able to talk about my language as well. Not a lot of people know about that language, which is a mixture of Cree and French. I was teasing Melanie, I said, “My French is the original French. Because, you know, it's part of the Couriers de Bois and the French fur traders. So my French is actually from that era. So we still have all that French in my language, whereas Melanie’s, it's now modern, right?
LDH:
French people in France say that yours (Melanie’s) is actually the original French. Quebec French is considered to be what the language was like before it transformed over in France and became modern.
You mentioned “Rosie” is a trilingual film.
Is it Michif you’re teaching them, the (indigenous) language in the class scene. Is that where it came in?
GM:
Yeah, so my language is pretty (much) French. So sometimes there's three. Our numbers are crazy, and household things are French- dirt and colds are French. So the numbers were all created. I wanted to tell a story about chosen family, to monitor those children that were taken away- it's part of the 60s Scoop, and the effects of that. Some of them will never know who they are, or where their family's from, or who their blood relatives are. I wanted to tell a story, to honour them, because they're doing the best that they can in the world. And just to say, that they're strong, and they're survivors, and I admire and honour them. So that's why I wanted to tell “Rosie” as well, but also, it's a story about beauty in trash. So metaphoric faith, there's a lot of people that think that others are less than them, for example, Jigger (the character of a homeless Cree man, played by actor Brandon Oakes), who's my favourite character, but he's the one that's most grounded to me. He's the one that has his culture, and his language, and he's the one that tells Rosie, and shares the culture with Rosie. So he is, actually, the strongest character.
That's the whole tragedy of it, always. There's people in Europe that don't even realize where they're from. There's a film out there which (Dr.) Tasha Hubbard did. She's Cree from the prairies. She did a documentary on family, the family that found each other. For years and years apart, and they were all over the world. (“Birth of a Family”, 2017, NFB)
LDH:
What acting role did you play in “Bones of Crows” ?
GM:
It's about residential school, and it takes place over 100 years, following a woman and matriarch. I played the Matriarch’s daughter.
There's so many people in Canada that don't know about my culture or the atrocities that happened. Two years ago, social workers went into a hospital and took a baby right out of a woman's arms… it was based on lies, but the power the government has, the power that the social workers and doctors have, is unbelievable… I can't imagine them doing that to a person that's non Indigenous. It's unfathomable that doctors and the government could get away with that, but they do get away with it with indigenous people. “Rosie” is a story with a lot of heavy topics, but in the next moment, you can be laughing, because the way I grew up, if we just soaked in all the hurt and all the pain and all the atrocities, how life is so difficult, if we did that, it would be bleak, and there would be no tomorrow, but the way I grew up, we actually can laugh even though the hardship of life, even though our world is breaking and falling apart. We can still laugh because laughter is, like they say, medicine, and it is medicine because it allows you to be able to lift up your head and carry on. And when you laugh, you're telling the world, you know, I can carry on, I can do this, and I'm going to do it. I'm going to triumph and that's why there's like moments where, you know, characters are crying, and then the next moment they're laughing. Yeah.
End
The World Premiere of the Canadian Indie film, “Rosie”, was featured in the Discovery program at TIFF (Toronto International Film Festival) on September 9, 2022. It was also selected as the closing film at Toronto’s ImagineNATIVE Film and Media Arts festival in October, 2022.
The ROM (Royal Ontario Museum) in Toronto is presently hosting, until March 19, 2022, an important exhibition entitled, “Being Legendary.”It features original paintings by the brilliant Cree artist, Kent Monkman, aka “Miss Chief”, who curated the exhibit. It includes cultural artifacts from the ROM’s collections, but from an indigenous perspective. The exhibit illustrates indigenous knowledge and challenges the past, colonial interpretation of history. As one enters the final room, there is a room of 11 portraits entitled, “Shining Stars”, illustrating indigenous women and men, who in their present state of being are beacons of the future. Among them, a portrait of Gail Maurice, where she is honoured by Monkman as a, “Filmmaker. Writer. Actor. Michif and nehiyawewin first languages speaker! “
A fitting tribute, which coincides with the years 2022 until 2032 being designated the UN’s * “International Decade of Indigenous Languages“
*The United Nations General Assembly (Resolution A/RES/74/135) proclaimed the period between 2022 and 2032 as the International Decade of Indigenous Languages (IDIL 2022-2032), to draw global attention on the critical situation of many indigenous languages and to mobilize stakeholders and resources for their preservation, revitalization and promotion.
The International Decade aims at ensuring indigenous peoples’ right to preserve, revitalize and promote their languages, and mainstreaming linguistic diversity and multilingualism aspects into the sustainable development efforts. It offers a unique opportunity to collaborate in the areas of policy development and stimulate a global dialogue in a true spirit of multi-stakeholder engagement, and to take necessary for the usage, preservation, revitalization and promotion of indigenous languages around the world.
www.un.org/development/desa/indigenouspeoples/indigenous-...
www.1001pallets.com/2016/11/pallet-crafter-interview-14-a...
Today, we had the chance to ask some questions to Alessandro Fargnoli, Crafter from Sassocorvaro in Italy who made all kind of gorgeous furniture from recycled wooden pallets. If you think you deserve to be featured in the next interview, please, drop us an email.
Tell us a little more about you? Who you are? Where are you from?
Hi, my name's Alessandro Fargnoli, I'm 52 and I'm from Sassocorvaro, a little village in the center of Italy.
Why do you craft?
Really, I've always loved crafting. When I was young I used to do house projects on my own or with the help of my wife Adele. In 2000 we bought a house and we did the most part of the finishing works: floors, chimneys, interior decoration, mosaics and a lot more.
How did you learn to do wood crafts?
When I was 14 I worked in in a workshop in which I learned to work on valuable woodwork, then when I moved on from my birthplace (Torino) to Sassocorvaro I've been employed in a wood furniture industry for a while now.
How long have you been working with pallets?
3 years! The first time I worked with pallets was in 2014 for my daughter’s shop, I planned out and did the entire décor with EPAL pallets and other recycled materials. Now I’m still working on pallets and wood in general in order to made original pieces of art!
Why did you choose to work with pallets instead of purchased wood?
At the first time I can't understand how I could work with the strict measures pallets have, but I found the way to create everything I want by taking apart and rebuilding pallets, and by adding materials. My products made me so satisfied!
What are your can’t-live-without essentials?
I can’t live without essentials because our lives are built on essential things, that are the most important in order to create something bigger! But definitely my hand tools!
Are there any brands that are your favorites?
No, not in particular.
How would you describe your crafting style?
It is mine. Unique. It represents my personality and sometimes I don't listen to anyone’s opinion about my work during execution.
Are there any crafters/artists/designers that you particularly look up to?
No, not in particular.
Where do you do your wood crafts? How would you describe your workspace?
I usually work in an old backyard carport.
How did you make your workspace more functional and/or inspiring?
My “workshop” is placed outside under my house, here I have all my equipment and I can breathe fresh air and see nature.
What types of things inspire you?
I'm inspired by anything I see: nature, my family and my dogs who assist me when I play.
Where do you look for inspiration for a new woodcraft?
Everywhere!
When do you feel the most creative?
At any time!
We live in such a mass-produced, buy-it-now society. Why should people continue to make things by hand?
Because when you have something handmade, you own a piece of the person or crafter who made it.
What is your favorite medium to work in (other than pallets)?
Wood in general, iron and recycled material are my favorite mediums to work with.
What are your tips for people who'd like to start crafting?
Voice yourself! Just jump in and try it!
What are your most important safety tips when woodworking?
Glasses, gloves and a coat! Is important pay attention in any thing you do.
What is your guilty pleasure?
The last production is always the best I make.
What are some of your other hobbies or favorite things to do (other than crafting)?
I love to collect: Coca Cola cans and Swatch.
What are some of your best tips for breaking down, prepping, and cleaning pallets before you build with them?
First I wash pallets and then I plot them.
Have you designed any special tools or jigs for wood crafts?
No, not in particular.
What are some wood working skills you really want to learn?
I learn something every day...now I’m learning to use pyrography!
What is the one project you’re the proudest of so far?
Develop and create the entire furnishing on an entire house.
What else would you like to share with the pallet community?
Passion is the first thing you need to have in order to be a good crafter.
Editor’s Note: Thank you for your time and for sharing your story with us, and with our fellow Crafters. Your work is beautiful and inspiring to all of us, and we truly look forward to more from you in the future! Keep those gorgeous pieces coming!
Thanks Alessandro for this interview :)
To find more on Alessandro:
check his profile on 1001Pallets
I was ready for my interview.
I suppose it went alright, except when she dropped the name of someone I worked with that we had proffessional differences.
Oh well.
Bob in Michigan (according the car tag and heavy coat) interviewing a Shell owner for one of Shell's in-house publications.
I have a few of Bob's stories -- will dig them out and post them soon.
Interview with me about copenhagencyclechic.com, copenhagenize.com and cykelhjelm.org in the Norweigan version of The Financial Times - Dagens Næringsliv.
Badge for Social Media Innovation Quest in MIS3538 taught by Prof. Steven L. Johnson at Temple University Fox School of Business in Fall, 2011.
Today, we had the chance to ask some questions to Karell Ste-Marie, Crafter from Québec, Canada who make all kind of gorgeous projects from recycled wooden pallets. If you think you deserve to be featured in the next interview, please, drop us an email.
Tell us a little more about you? Who you are? Where are you from?
My name is Karell, I’m from Quebec, Canada – I co-founded a software company in 1999, sold it in 2015 and today am an executive of that company.
Why do you craft?
I have always been a crafter, I’ve been crafting software for more than 25 years. I wanted to have a hobby where I could craft outside of computers. I’ve created several items from chainmail the biggest being a chainmail shirt, I’ve also made several necklaces using Byzantine weaves.
How did you learn to do wood crafts?
I am mostly self-taught. A few of my friends in construction gave me guidance. The rest I have learned from YouTube and trial/error.
How long have you been working with pallets?
I started working with Pallets around 2013.
Pallet Project Organization Tip: Make Your Recycled Pallet Wood Box For Less Than 10$
Why did you choose to work with pallets instead of purchased wood?
The price… In Quebec, Canada is it quite cold and trees pretty much only half of the year, which means we have to ship wood all around. Dismantling Pallets also gave me an excellent way to stay active and stay in shape.
What are your can’t-live-without essentials?
I am a technology person first, I cannot live without my phone but I am not a Facebook or texting person… I use my phone' camera to film some of my YouTube content and to find inspiration on Pinterest.
When I am out hunting for Pallets I always have some of my cordless tools just in case I need to "help something fit" so I can bring it home.
Are there any brands that are your favorites?
My cordless tools are Ryobi, other than that I tend to use Dewalt and Ridgid.
Recycled Pallet Dog Steps To Climb Onto The Bed
How would you describe your crafting style?
At the moment I am definitely a rustic type of crafter, even when I’m not working with Pallet wood.
Are there any crafters/artists/designers that you particularly look up to?
I learned about Pallets first from Izzy Swan (Think Woodworks), then from Mike Fulton (MF Woodshop). My original inspiration for woodworking is Marc Spagnuolo (The Woodwhisperer) and favorite is Alain Vaillancourt (The Woodpecker). All of them are on YouTube.
Where do you do your wood crafts? How would you describe your workspace?
I have two houses and use both garages. I am moving to the new bigger garage more and more but do not yet have electricity there. This will ultimately become my woodshop.
Where do you look for inspiration for a new woodcraft?
I watch YouTube, browse Pinterest and of course look at articles on 1001 Pallets!
When do you feel the most creative?
I am an executive and boss during the week… I am a woodworking during the weekend…
We live in such a mass-produced, buy-it-now society. Why should people continue to make things by hand?
Mass production makes you dependent on someone else’s; it causes you to become dependent on those companies. While it would be unrealistic to be able to be completely independent (some people are able to do it) I like to keep some basic skills as they just help me save money.
What is your favorite medium to work in (other than pallets)?
I like to use firewood quite a bit; I have managed to turn some logs into planks. I have done this using a chainsaw and a bandsaw – the bandsaw is my favorite approach. Otherwise I’ll get some rough wood from different stores which I run through the jointer and planer.
What are your tips for people who'd like to start crafting?
Start with a nice kit of cordless tools: circular saw, reciprocating saw and drill… That is really all you need. Anything else you go out and purchase will be a luxury and is difficult to justify… Learn to read pallet codes, 1001Pallets has an excellent article on this. Pick a simple straightforward project and just do it. Accept failure and just try again, success comes from keeping on your craft and not giving up.
What are your most important safety tips when woodworking? Have you ever had any injuries or close calls?
I have experienced kickback on the table saw where a plank flew in my lower abdomen; I have run nails through both my planer and jointer and seen wood explode in the process… I have seen a friend of mine use the wrong side of a table disc sander and end up in the hospital with non-permanent consequences. You should slowly raise the bar and only do things that you are comfortable doing. I find that people are more levelheaded when they are working alone… Do not try to impress anyone, focus on your goal, which is to get the job done safely. Always wear gloves when handling a pallet, you have no idea what it feels like to have a splinter in your good hand and not be able to get it out until your wife comes home from spending the weekend at her mother’s…
What is your guilty pleasure?
I love a good beer… Too much beer and power tools don’t mix… Ever since I bought myself a new table saw I find that I can use it without any beer in my system which I have mixed feelings about… My old table saw was terrifying and I’d use it only as a last resort.
What are some of your other hobbies or favorite things to do (other than crafting)?
I am a YouTube content provider. I like to do pretty much everything myself. I also have brewed beer, brewed wine, made a chainmail shirt, made chainmail necklaces (for my family only) and try to educate my kids about financial intelligence (which they don’t teach in school).
What are some of your best tips for breaking down, prepping, and cleaning pallets before you build with them? Do you have a specific tool you use, or a technique for cleaning the boards/removing nails, etc.?
As you can easily see from my videos, my favorite tools are the Pallet buster and the air punch. The pallet buster will break down those pallets into nice planks without splitting (if it’s not below freezing and you go at a certain speed) and the air punch will allow to remove nails from boards at around 1 nail per 2 seconds.
Have you designed any special tools or jigs for wood crafts?
I have made the same basic things that most woodworkers will do, nothing of significance or special. Wood track saw for cutting straight lines and a table saw sled – those types of things. I have made my own wood cart (you can see it at the end of one of my videos) and my own bench (the bench was not made from pallet wood).
What are some wood working skills you really want to learn?
Given the beautiful types of woods (and colors), you can get from pallets I would love to do intarsia but am nowhere near that yet.
What is the one project you’re the proudest of so far?
2 years ago, I made some wood wall sconces for my mother. Using a birch firewood log that I cut it into planks I created her Christmas present. I included the candleholders for her and she absolutely loved it. The lines in the wood and the amount of time I spent on it made the piece simply awesome.
Glued Wood Strip Table/Chopping Block Inspiration
Editor’s Note: Thank you for your time and for sharing your story with us, and with our fellow Crafters. Your work is beautiful and inspiring to all of us, and we truly look forward to more from you in the future! Keep those gorgeous pieces coming!
Thanks Karell for this interview :)
To find more on Karell:
Karell profile on 1001Pallets
Mingle Media TV and our Red Carpet Report host Lindsay Hoffman were invited to come out to cover Disney Channels new Original Movie “Bad Hair Day,” starring Laura Marano (Austin & Ally) and Leigh-Allyn Baker (Good Luck Charlie, The 7 D) premiere event red carpet at Walt Disney Studios.
Bad Hair Day premieres on the Disney Channel on Friday, February 13th at 8 PM
Get the Story from the Red Carpet Report Team, follow us on Twitter and Facebook at:
www.facebook.com/RedCarpetReportTV
www.youtube.com/MingleMediaTVNetwork
About “Bad Hair Day"
This adventure buddy comedy follows Monica, a high school tech-whiz whose prom day abruptly shifts into a wild ride across town, thanks to a down-on-her-luck cop and a jewel thief. The story unfolds with Monica on the morning of her senior prom. She's eager to get ready – that is until she realizes everything that can go wrong does, starting with her sudden and epically uncontrollable hair and her once lovely, yet now destroyed, prom dress. On top of that, she's mistakenly enlisted by Liz, a police officer hot on the trail of missing jewels. Her Prom day goes from bad to mad as the pair is pursued by a dogged jewel thief on a wild ride across the city. For more info visit www.DisneyChannel.com
For more of Mingle Media TV’s Red Carpet Report coverage, please visit our website and follow us on Twitter and Facebook here:
www.facebook.com/minglemediatvnetwork
www.flickr.com/MingleMediaTVNetwork
Follow our host Lindsay Hoffman at www.twitter.com/LindsayBHoffman
Photo: Thodore Kadima
Published in: Community Eye Health Journal Vol. 21 No. 68 DECEMBER 2008 www.cehjournal.org
An interview on the local news. I'd like to thank my cousin for giving me the microphone. Please comment and fave. www.youtube.com/watch?v=dZIJhQwi9xA 109