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Hello fellow Letterheads, It's been a loooong time since I've been on this site. A lot of water has ran under the bridge. I'm still doing sign work and painting art, although art is up and down. Sign jobs keep me busy and I just built a new shop in a new town, which is crazy at my age...but, hey I guess I'll never quit! I just wanted to see if anyone I knew was still on this board.
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I am still here like an old over grown tree root that you every now and then you trip over it. "I ain't a budging!"
-------------------- Signs by Alicia Jennings (Mudflap Girl) Tacoma, WA Since 1987 Have Lipstick, will travel. Posts: 3812 | From: Tacoma, WA. U.S.A. | Registered: Dec 1999
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Making the simple complicated is commonplace; making the complicated simple, awesomely simple, that's creativity. — Charles Mingus Posts: 6712 | From: Mendocino, CA. USA | Registered: Nov 1998
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I still pop in from time to time. Good to hear from you.
Building a shop is always a good idea. I built our shop at age 50 and added to it a decade later. We just undertook our most ambitious project we've ever personally tackled. Officially it belongs to Peter but as he says we are all in this together.
I turned 65 yesterday and have no plans to retire or slow down. I'm simply having too much fun doing what I love. Best of all I get to do it with family by my side.
-grampa dan
-------------------- Dan Sawatzky Imagination Corporation Yarrow, British Columbia dan@imaginationcorporation.com http://www.imaginationcorporation.com
Being a grampa is one of the the most wonderful things in the world!!! Posts: 8738 | From: Yarrow, B.C. Canada | Registered: Nov 1998
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Hello Mark, nice to hear you are still around doing what you love. Dan, happy belated birthday. I lurk here as well.....missing those that left us. Hoping to hear about the new shop and the new town. Sounds like a fresh start. Good luck in your new adventure.
-------------------- Susan Banasky Source Signs Nanaimo, British Columbia sourcesigns@shaw.ca
When in need....go directly to the "Source"!
Proud Supporter of this "Knowledge Network"! Posts: 1323 | From: Nanaimo, B.C. Canada | Registered: Oct 1999
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We inherited the family Christmas tree farm and the house and garage that are on it. It is 100 miles from our home of the last 34 years. Ernie couldn’t part with it, so who built a 32’ x 56’ heated pole barn. We now have a second work shop , which includes his first home built CNC router, blacksmithing equipment, power hammer and forges, wood working equipment. Metal working equipment . He just finished building a 5’ x 5’ CNC plasma cutter. (From an old CNC router), We also have all the equipment for sand casting aluminum parts. Having fun, not ready to fully retire
Diane
-------------------- Balch Signs 1045 Raymond Rd Malta, NY 12020 518 885-9899 signs@balchsigns.com http://www.balchsigns.com Posts: 1695 | From: MaltaNY | Registered: Jan 2000
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Hi Guys, I made a lot of changes after my wife passed in early 2015. Sold the place in Weatherford, met a woman here East of OKC and found some land to build this shop. Built it a little bigger and plan to lease part of it. I still show art in two galleries. One in Santa Fe and the other in Hoboken, NJ. Art is up and down but my NJ gallery sends me quite a few commission jobs. I'm really back to making signs and trying to move more handcrafted and nicer design work. We also built a waterfront metal home on Lake Eufaula, OK, which is where we spend about every weekend. So, still creating in one form or another!I'm also on Instagram @yearwooddesignworks. FB as well, but I'm burning out from all the crap there. Instagram is more visual without the rants! Take care everyone!
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Hi Mark, good to hear from you. I still have the tool box that you put a pin stripe design on and signed at the Mazeppa Muster in 2005. Part of it is scratched off but most of it is still there. Sorry to hear about your wife. And I agree with your comment on Facebook. It has become pretty disgusting lately. I'll have to check into the instagram thing.
-------------------- Dave Sherby "Sandman" SherWood Sign & Graphic Design Crystal Falls, MI 49920 906-875-6201 sherwoodsign@sbcglobal.net Posts: 5396 | From: Crystal Falls, MI USA | Registered: Apr 1999
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Nice to hear from you Mark. I still pop in and out of Letterville from time to time. Still living in Puerto Rico, and enjoying our "freezing" winter weather! Doing more boat work than anything these days.
-------------------- Felix Marcano PuertoRicoSigns.Com Luquillo, PR
Work hard, party like a tourist! Posts: 2274 | From: Luquillo, Puerto Rico, USA | Registered: Nov 2000
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Mark, when you're sending, say, a painting to NJ, how do you send it? Do you need to crate it yourself?
-------------------- dennis kiernan independent artist san francisco, calif, usa Posts: 907 | From: san francisco, ca usa | Registered: Feb 2010
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I'm still here, too. I'm not doing as many projects as I used to and mainly do work for two customers. One job we're working on is an identity system for some walking and jogging trails in a business park. It's been a fun one to be involved with. The business park is loaded with whimsical outdoor art and is quite pretty.
I've had loads of back problems (7 degenerated discs) and have lost 1.5" height from when I was in my 20s. I've had several major surgeries and numerous injections for the low back and sciatic pain. I call the sciatic nerve the "psychotic nerve" because when it goes out, it makes me want to kill something!
In spite of the pain, I still backpack, ride motorcycles in the desert, play flag football, basketball and soccer. I figure if I'm going to hurt, I might as well have some fun while I'm hurting.
Since I spend as much time as possible in the outdoors, I recently took a Wilderness Advanced First Aid course... but I'll probably be my own patient!
Tomorrow, they will put in an electronic neurostimulator (a.k.a. the "Bug Zapper") in my spine for a week long test. I'll even have my own remote control! If that doesn't get me relief from the sciatic pain, I'll need to have another major 360º fusion, something I don't look forward to. I had a 360º fusion at L5-S1 a couple years ago and this surgery would do the same at L4-L5 and add more hardware at L3-L4. The doctors can't give me a straight answer on how I'll like the results. Finally, one of the PAs told me the reason is none of them have seen someone my age (66) who wants to do all the things I do. If the fusion cuts the pain, I may be willing to put up with some restrictions. The amount of pain I deal with daily is a drag and I also want to get off all the pain meds which make me fuzzy and forgetful.
-------------------- David Harding A Sign of Excellence Carrollton, TX Posts: 5084 | From: Carrollton, TX, USA | Registered: Nov 1998
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Glad you all are still here! I've not read or posted in a few years - But, always appreciate the feed back whenever I did have a question. After 34 years of sign making in western NC, we made the move (only 2.5 hours west) to be near our five grands! (all 3 of our children/spouse live here) I wanted to retire, but miss the work and the income! Thus, going to set back up for selective work - no more 80 hours work weeks for me! Exciting to read about your new shop and other sign maker's updates. Sorry about the back pain, David. My niece recently had the neurostimulator week test, then the surgery.
-------------------- Debra Carr Sign Crafters 502 S. Main Street Hendersonville, NC 28791 Posts: 82 | From: Hendersonville, NC | Registered: Nov 2006
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I'm also still here, and enjoying retirement.
The only thing they get wrong about the "golden years" is that they are the "rusty years"!
David, I can empathise with your back problems. I also have degenerated/bulged discs in my lower back and experience sciatic nerve pain. I will be re-trying spinal decompression when we return to Canada in May.
-------------------- Dave Grundy retired in Chelem,Yucatan,Mexico/Hensall,Ontario,Canada 1-519-262-3651 Canada 011-52-1-999-102-2923 Mexico cell 1-226-785-8957 Canada/Mexico home
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Still around, but don't drop by as much anymore. We'll be in Keene, New Hampshire this summer with the Walldogs - you guys should come. It's an indescribable feeling to transform a town in 4 days....
-------------------- www.signcreations.net Sonny Franks Lilburn, GA 770-923-9933 Posts: 4115 | From: Lilburn, GA USA | Registered: Feb 1999
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Been a while for me too. I've moved more into web design, social media marketing, aerial photo & video, video production. I guess you could say I went the Dan Antonelli route. Still do boat numbers though.
Good to see all the familiar faces, and sadly to learn that some are no longer with us.
-------------------- Tony Broussard Graphic Details Digital Media Loreauville, LA Posts: 395 | From: Loreauville, LA | Registered: Jul 1999
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