The Queer WoodworkerEvery mother’s day, I give thanks for the mothers I have in my life, especially my own. Mothers are amazing. But it’s also a hard day for me, because my body won’t let me be one, no matter how much I want it to. This can be true for cis women and non-binary people, and […]
A lot of the time, I do woodworking to make objects that are useful in themselves. I might make a box for my bicycle cargo rack, or a step stool for my niece, or a table for a friend. Other times, I use my wood and tools less directly. I wanted to make a patch […]
I bought a set of router templates to help me cut hinge mortises for doors. They work fine, but they didn’t come with any kind of case, and I’m worried about losing the doodads. The plywood I was using was really thin, and I was worried there wouldn’t be enough strength just gluing butt joints […]
I got ma’am’d today. I couldn’t tell if the person who did so thought I was a cis woman, or thought I was a trans woman and was humoring me. I get both, and the same for sir. There are times where I attempt to influence people’s perception of me in a particular direction by […]
This year I am trying to grow some vegetables. But this blog is about woodworking, right? Have no fear, there’s woodworking here. For instance, there’s the raised beds I made out of cedar and filled with 800lb of compost: But that was just cutting two of the boards in half and screwing them together. What […]
I’m queer. In fact, I’m several different flavors of queer. I am one of the most openly queer people in my friend group, and that results in a lot of questions about queerness being pointed to me. Today I want to talk about one specific type of question that I get asked: “Can I still […]
I have a bicycle. I’m trying to use it more for my errands when I can, whether that’s picking up food at a local restaurant, getting groceries, or grabbing something at the hardware store. I have panniers on my bicycle already, but sometimes things don’t fit neatly in them, e.g. take-away boxes get turned sideways […]
Intersectionality is a huge thing in autism. Co-diagnosis with ADHD, depression, learning disabilities etc is higher in autistic people. Being autistic and Black is a different experience than being autistic and white. Being an autistic woman is a different experience than being an autistic man. There are a lot of intersectional areas to explore, but […]
Long ago, I bought an oscillating spindle sander. It has been quite useful in my various projects, and to increase its convenience, I created a stand for it. The stand includes several simple drawers to hold sanding-related supplies, and at the base it has swivel casters to allow me to move it around my tiny […]
From time to time, I will hear someone tell a queer person “you’ll grow out of it” or “it’s just a phase” or “I don’t want you to make any decisions yet, you’re too young to know.” Usually this comes from a parent, but sometimes from an older sibling, grandparent, teacher, or other authority figure. […]