A MESSAGE FROM YOUR PRESIDENT:

The weather is driving me crazy lately. One day it’s freezing, the next it boils. I don’t know what to hock anymore.

At last, Spring is just around the corner. I can hardly wait for warmer weather and all the things I griped about last year. Isn’t it crazy how the season you are in can have so many faults. In the winter we wish for warmth and in the summer we wish for cool. At least, I don’t have to shovel a hot summer sun. And snow? At least it fills the potholes.

I think I might try gardening again this year. Last year left a little to be desired. It was my first attempt and I ended up with a Peter Pan garden. Yea! It never grew up. I couldn’t get anything to grow. I bought the best seed. I planted peas and tomatoes, and I paid eighty-five cents a can for them. I put in a rock garden and two of them were dead the next morning. I guess I don’t exactly have a green thumb. I once killed a flagpole. The only green thumb I’ve ever had is after painting a mallard drake. When I bought a hanging fern, the rope died. Oh well, maybe I’ll go fishing instead. At least I can lie about the one that got away.

Your Doane Committee made their first trip to Doane in March and we have good news and bad news. Well, not really bad news, but rather small glitches. We toured the new art building and it is awesome. We’ll be able to use four rooms which will enable us to spread out a little more. One benefit will be leaving the Great Room clear for night classes and show and tell on Friday.

As far as the cafeteria is concerned, you’ll be pleased to find out that it is under new management and we have been promised much better service. This is where the glitches come in. The cafeteria will be undergoing some remodeling and there may be some small changes in food service. We assured them that if the food is good, we can work around the remodeling. I believe patience will be the key word for us. Another nice thing offered by the new manager will be to have the coffee shop in the Tiger Room open evenings Monday through Thursday. If you’re hooked on lattes, muffins, and scones, like me, you’ll love this added feature. All in all, we expect another outstanding experience. There are still one or two openings in most of the classes, so if you are still teetering on attending, it is a good time to apply.

While we are on the subject, we need to make a correction in the class description for Marty Dolphens and P.J. Driscoll’s class. We had a typo and were not accurate in our description of their project. Erase “Old World Santa”. That was last year’s project. Marty and P.J. are offering a 20” Woodland Santa holding a tree, so if you’re looking for an outstanding mallet tool class offered by excellent instructors, don’t miss this one. They still have several openings.

Classes that are filled, are Gerald and Barb Sears, Mike and Sherry Shipley, Nancy Larson, Izo Becic, Bob Travis, and Larry and Sara Cornwell. Check your February Newsletter and get enrolled while there are still some openings.

Did I tell you I bought a new anti-magnetic, anti-gravity, and waterproof watch? I lost it. I’d probably get paper cuts from a get-well card.

Don’t forget that the International Wood Carvers Congress is being held in Davenport, Iowa in June. It’s always a good place to test your carving ability and or visit to see work from the best of the best. You can contact Larry and Carol Yudis at the Woodcraft Shop for details.

All for now,

Denny

Point to Ponder: If flowers don’t talk back to you, are they mums?