Spiff me

Back when I worked retail, a ''spiff'' was the $10 bonus we got whenever we sold certain ''high priority'' brands of shoes. Now I call any sort of small reward or reinforcer of good behavior a spiff -- e.g., tossing the dog half a dog biscuit when he's on the way outside when we're locking up the house to leave.

So, as I mentioned recently, I've been putting in some long hours. Since I'm on wages (i.e., hourly), rather than salary, this is pretty much doubled my income for the month. So, I decided to spiff myself by getting a little something.


My wife bought a pair of shoes. Not my thing -- but fair enough.


I considered buying a stylophone -- a funky little synthesizer that you play with a stylus. Or maybe its cousin, a little drum machine thing. But, I know it's at least a half a year -- realistically a **minimum** of a year -- before I get back into recording. So I decided to go with something that's more immediately useful.

I cast about, looking for a triangular file that's at least 1/2" on a side -- for sharpening one of my larger-toothed handsaws. But oddly, no one seems to carry one! (Not the local ''big box'' hardware store; not the speciality woodworking tools shop; nor either of two ''tradesperson'' tool supply places.)

So, I ended up getting these (all ''used'' -- bargain!):

• my first mortise chisel (a **real** mortise chisel, which is heavier-duty than a ''sash chisel''); mine is pictured at the start of this blog entry
• my first moulding plane (examples of moulding planes), and
• another splitting wedge (very shallow angle: about 5 degrees)
  

The mortise chisel I bought online from a used handtool website that's here in Queensland; the other two I picked up from the antiques shop we visited yesterday (I bargained five bucks off the purchase...).


This is an interesting indicator of where music versus woodworking is in my life: given $X to spend, I spend it on tools, not music gear.

Although that balance will shift, presumably, over time.


--GG