state of the craftsmanshit address #7

yes, sadly it seems, ye olde rod shoppe is closed for the summer

we cannot continue w/ the grunt work in

 this oppressive heat

hell, we can't even golf in it anymore

(it sucks getting old, but sure beats the alternative)

the shoppe is a mess

main workbench covered in shit odds and ends

gluing and turning bench covered in corkdust

there are a handful of rods, split and staggered awaiting nodework soaking and rough planing

but that's on hold until cooler temps in fall

flies are all tied for the summer season

and the boxes are finally properly organized

I like that and wonder why I waited

 so long to do it

the random nature of those boxes previously was perplexing and frustrating

perhaps, here I shall editorialize on the latest smallstreams drama

since I'm forbidden from doing so there

and tired of whining elsewhere

and this issue only pertains to me indirectly...

several years back I don't remember exactly when

brother mike shay agreed to make a bamboo rod for the winner of the annual writing contest

I was a judge and the winner was nearly unanimous

who it was is neither here nor there 

though he does play a central role in the ensuing drama

shay built the blank wrapped it and it languished on his bench awaiting rewrapping

and taking a seat on the bench as there were paying jobs to complete

completely understandable no doubt

prize winning blank photographed by rj love 4-6-10 in congress, az

time goes on and on while the intended recipient of said rod begins to get impatient

the impatience leads to accusations of deception etc

again that's neither here nor there

and again entirely understandable

since the contest ran and winner was decided the site has changed hands twice

original owner and sponsor of the contest decided to take matters into his own hands

probably after persistent haranguing 

so he takes possession of the ferruled blank

apparently stripped of its wrapping and guides

and will deliver the prize tomorrow

meeting the recipient halfway

leaving all parties satisfied apparently

my aching ass

this is total halfassery

I am not blaming senor shay at all

circumstances beyond anyone's control forced his hand

I do blame the original sponsor who shall remain nameless

though you can prolly figure out who I'm talking about easily enough

said sponsor is fully capable and fully equipped to have finished the rod himself 

and honoring the spirit and expectations of the contest and prize

instead he will deliver the unfinished blank to the winner of the contest

who lacks the skillset and training to finish the rod himself at his own expense

though he fully intends to do so

at his own expense

sponsor has all the components necessary to finish the rod on hand

he also has a shop equipped to wrap and varnish the rod and install the reel seat

something that he could have finished in two weeks time tops

yet he chooses not to

and that is halfassed bullshit

there may be more to this story than the sides of it I have heard

and I'm sure the culprit feels justified in his actions

now that the matter is out of his hands and halfassed resolved

I disagree

the spirit of the contest and integrity of the parties involved including smallstreams.com

have been compromised

and that is the bottom line

meanwhile...