David Barnett
"That sounds like an elegant process to flatten soles, I'll have to try it when I get the chance. Thanks."

Scraping is even kinda fun and for machine tool ways, all that frosting holds just enough oil to keep things rust free and gliding smoothly.

"Also, I ordered the Belomo loupe, gave them your name, hope it exceeds my cheap little linen tester. Thanks again."

As for the BelOMO loupes, they're a joy to use. One of my best friends takes these on his medical missions to Haiti for minor surgeries, cleaning up dermal narsties one gets in the tropics, and even for field diagnosis. Hand loupes are held close to the eye, necessarily removing one hand from the equation, so serve best for frequent edge inspection. When you need hands free to work under more constant lower power (3.5x) and greater working distances (12 to 17"), surgical/dental binoculars do the trick, and the prices have really dropped recently. Think Chinese optics, which can be very good indeed, especially for sharpening saws and so on. But the 10x loupe is the way to go for most things and is the one lens that everyone should have.

"And why can't you walk? Geesh, in one day I find out you can't walk and Tom had his feet lopped off by an airplane. Both events sadden me."

Not to worry about my walking. Most days, I can make it from room to room with planning, canes and rest stops. It's just that both legs stay in compression casts and have for most of the last decade. As a gravity-challenged diabetic, I've been lucky to retain my feet (and sight) up to now -- just can't use 'em as easily as before. I can stand at the workbench or the bandsaw for a couple or three minutes at a stretch, so manage to get some things done. Everything but the bench is on wheels and I have help pushing things about and fetching tools when needed.

Outside of woodworking, which these days is mostly for my own needs and pleasures, nearly everything I do is chair friendly. I even have a multi-axis boom microscope and jeweler's bench that wheels right up to my bedside for those long insomniac nights. Latenight lapidary, engraving, wax carving, chainmaking are my wee hour delights. No distractions. Pretty sweet, all things considered. Besides, most of my problems and limitations are my own damn fault, unlike Tom's more catastrophic injuries, so I've had time to gradually adjust and find workarounds.