Hello Everyone,

My name is Jeff Strickland.  I spend the bulk of my time hanging around the 
Handtools forum on Woodnet.net.  Many of you here will recognize me from 
there as Starfish.

Well, let's see...  I'm 35, married, and I work as an Electrical Design 
Engineer for a division of Plantronics.  I design telephones for a living.

I have been doing some form of woodworking my whole life.  One of my great 
grandfathers was a carpenter, the other a machinist.  My grandfather was a 
carpenter early in life and later a woodworker hobbyist later.  My father 
has been a woodworker his entire life.  When my grandfather passed away in 
1996, I inherited the lion's share of his tools, including a slew of hand 
tools.  Dad took the Record 05, the stanley 98 and a bunch of other tools.  
I got just about everything I needed to start woodworking seriously, 
including a #4 size Shelton plane (hehehe...   Got rid of that junker 
fast!).  Anyway, I have been obsessed with handtools since, and now have 4 
sets of chisels, Stanley planes from 3 through 7, a bunch of different hand 
saws...  Well, it just goes downhill from there.

I put myself through college (well, my parents did a lot, I just filled in 
the blanks really) as a car stereo installer.  I made a lot of custom 
systems, so I consider myself an expert with MDF (blah).  I also did a stint 
right out of college as a controls engineer for a small turnkey fabricator, 
so I learned the finer points of machining and metalwork.  This all just 
helped to set the stage for my love of tools and tool design.  Which brings 
me here.

Um... What else...  I currently live in Chattanooga, TN.  Originally from 
Wichita, KS, I moved to Marietta, GA as a teen, and went to college at 
Southern Tech, where I got a degree in Electrical Engineering Technology.

I cam definitely say that I spend far more time playing with my tools then 
actually making anything.  I love to sharpen stuff, so I obsess over 
mirrored bevels...

Other interests:  I have been a musician my whole life.  I spent my first 
two years of college studying percussion, and have played violin, guitar, 
bass, drums, piano off and on the whole time.  I actually put my machining 
and woodworking skills to use once and made a snare drum for my drum kit.

I'm also an avid cyclist since 1992.  I have raced off and on (mostly off) 
on both road and mountain bikes, and had a brief moment as a bike collector. 
  I still have too many bikes, and I am like a rabid football fan when the 
Tour de France comes on in July (and would be in April and August when the 
Giro and Vuelta were happening if OLN would start showing it again).

My final obsession for your viewing enjoyment is my flyfishing hobby.  
Living in Chattanooga, I'm within an hour of some trophy waters.  I also 
love to sneak off to the Tennessee river and fish for Stripers and White 
bass.

Anyway, I think that's about it...  I look forward to great conversations 
with you all!!

Regards,
Jeff

P.S.  Oh yeah, before I forget, anyone have a router or plow plane they want 
to unload?

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