handy dandy

I've been feeling handy the last day or so. Okay, maybe not "handy," exactly...how about "handy-ish"? I'm not one who is generally comfortable with tools, but I'm working on changing that, thanks to Lee from Five Rivers. Let me explain: about a week and a half ago, I stopped into the Five Rivers Arts Alliance office to drop off my membership renewal and my fee to participate in this year's Arts Downtown and All Around festival. While I was there, I asked Harriet and Lee if they knew anyone who had display racks for sale or rent (the ADAA group show takes place in an area where we cannot use wall space to hang work). They said no, but Lee mentioned that she had been trying to figure out how she was going to display her work for that show as well...then she started thinking out loud and described a setup that she would probably construct herself. She tried to explain how she would do it and what type of material she would use, but I just wasn't following her. Then she cheerfully said, "Well, once I do it, I can show you how to make one." I was excited and intimidated at the same time. I said that the idea sounded great, but that I would need a lot of help since I am pretty clueless about this sort of thing. We agreed to check in with each other in a day or two and go from there.

Sure enough, I heard from Lee the next day. She told me about the material she had just purchased to make her racks, but that she was just too tired to start working on the project tonight (which worked out well for me because my day was crazier than I had anticipated). She also told me that their office neighbors had a large wooden display unit that they were willing to let me use for free! It would need to be cleaned up and repainted, but it was mine for the asking. I told her that everything sounded great and that I would come by after the weekend to check things out.

Two days ago, I stopped by Five Rivers and looked at the wooden display. It looked good to me, but it was really big. "This will never fit in my little car," I said, feeling a bit deflated. Lee said, "Oh, don't worry, I'll throw it in my truck and bring it over to the show for you." That got me excited again, and I decided I would stop by the next day with some paint to clean it up. Lee started telling me about the display units she built, and when it was obvious I wasn't following what she was saying, she drew a diagram...much clearer, but not completely understandable to me. Then she said, "Well, what are you doing right now? Let's take a ride over to my house and you can see exactly how I built them." I followed her and I really liked what I saw. The units were large (so a lot of work would be able to fit on each one) and they seemed pretty sturdy. I started asking questions about the process, and when Lee saw how nervous I was getting, she sat me down and wrote out clear, step-by-step instructions that someone as inexperienced as myself could understand. She took some photos of the units so I could have them as a reference, she reassured me that I would be able to handle it, and told me to feel free to call her in case I got stuck.

I bought the supplies the next day (after spending two hours removing nails from and repainting the free wooden display), laid everything out that night, and started the construction process today...and I have to say that so far, I feel pretty good about things. I'm not done yet, but that's just because I had a bunch of other stuff I had to do today. I don't want to jinx myself since something can always go awry, but I think I might actually be able to handle this. Don't worry, though: I have both of Lee's phone numbers right in my purse!