End of an era

Our lives pass through different stages as we progress to wherever we are bound. Some of these stages are brief, others seem interminable. To me, pipe carving seems like an era, though it has only been about four years.

Pipe 93 was offered, an email was sent to the people on the mailing list, and a post was made to inform those interested of its availability. Many, many people took a look at it.

It seems that, aside from one person who has most of my latest and best pieces, the market is simply not interested. Either my pipes do not appeal, or the prices that move me toward break-even and possibly a small profit, are too high for the market.

To do other than accept that and move forward would be foolish.

As I mentioned to a good friend, it is very likely that pipe 93 will be the last pipe that I offer. Not certain, but very likely. Further attempts to make a living from carving and selling pipes would be ridiculous -- not only would my pieces sit there to no purpose, I would be spending huge amounts of time that could be spent on other efforts that might perhaps bring some income.

When I look back at the very long four years that I've spent in the pipe carving business, I do not see failure. Before I began making pipes, I made a bookcase for my daughter. It was strong and functional, but there were places that one could insert a pipe cleaner between boards that should have been precisely joined. Now the expectation I have for the fit between the mortise insert and the stem is that it be invisible except under magnification. When I began making pipes, airflow and staining and finishing were all msyteries to me; now they are understood.

The craft has taught me many things, things that I doubt that I would ever have learnt elsewhere.

I have still not determined how things will proceed from here. The two remaining pipes will not sit on the site for more than another week or so. I will make major changes to the website, but their nature depends on whether I continue to make pipes at all.

Carving does bring something good into my life, something I cannot readily describe in words. It has become a form of active meditation. I am not certain that I wish to, or would be able to, give it up entirely.

Occasional periods of total confusion seem to be good for the soul.

Return

I was away from the shop for most of last week, spending time with relatives in the city. Since returning things have been confused but now pipe 93 is approaching completion. Yesterday afternoon the 1000-grit sanding was completed, the marking was done, and the final stain applied. What remains is two grit-levels of sanding and final polishing.

For my own taste, if it finishes out as it appears, it will be perhaps the best looking that I've made. The lines are clean and crisp, the shape almost art-deco, both masculine and elegant without either giving in to the other. The grain is what it is, the bottom of the bowl has some of the nicest "swirlies" that I've seen in some time.

There are many carvers in the world. We all bring different things. Some bring speed, some bring shape, some bring finish, and then there are combinations of things. Smokers have many pipes to choose from. Economics enters into everything.

There are many things that I must do before winter begins, so many that I sometimes sit confused over which must be done first.

Our lives change in ways we could never guess, for reasons unfathomable.