Johanna

ryano- we're almost neighbors. I live near St Marys. My village has 900 people in it. We have two churches, a Post Office, bank, market, pizza place and a gun store. I have been researching the Miami Erie Canal and Susie's town with my mother, and we have written a couple of books about New Bremen. The Interstate, trains and canal all missed my village. Here are pics I have taken from all over- but a lot of the ME Canal series is in there. I have lived in Ohio, PA (south of Pgh.), NH (near Lake Winnipesaukee), MA, NY (NYC), Charleston, SC, Norfolk,VA, MD, Macon, GA and back to Ohio. I like West Virginia, too- and I would love to live there, somewhere near the New River by Beckley, if I could. I also would go back to New England or Charleston, SC to live. I'm done with city life, though- and I know Wade would hate it. Good topic! Johanna

Hmmmm I count 4 in the pic, plus I know there is one in my cigarette case. YES YES and YES!! I think that's what I was trying to say. I could understand women paying designer label prices if they were getting what they wanted, but we DON'T! (However, I have seen some "man purses" that are a little closer to the mark than most womens bags.) I could justify that kind of money on quality, but not a label. Johanna

In January the zipper on the purse I've been carrying for a few years completely broke. I went to Penneys and bought a new purse with faux leather trim and it's now June and it's junk. That's what it looked like new. It is now a disaster- except the zipper still works. The cheap leather's finish is rubbed off, the inside liner (cloth) is ripped, and I can never find anything in there anyway. This is a pic of the junk that has to fit, plus my book or whatever: Ed Santoro's thread today of the designer handbags has got me thinking- I WANT A PURSE I LIKE! I want a purse that I can take to the opera or the beach, and I want it to be sturdy and not some imported cobbled-together expensive crap. If I'm going to pay designer handbag prices, I want a purse designed for me! I don't want a purse from a warehouse, and I'd be more impressed with a makers mark than a fancy designer label. Why? I don't want to have to worry about my purse- just grab and go. Because I don't want a purse that is going to dump out all the contents when my son learns how to drive a car. I don't want a purse I have to keep on my lap instead of tucking on the floor in a restaurant. I don't want zipper failure, and I want to be able to find things in it immediately without rooting aaround like a baglady at the checkout. That $1500 purse Ed posted wouldn't last 6 months, and neither did my Penneys special. But I carried my old purse (the one at the top of this thread) for 10 years? or so, and I'd fix it and carry it again if it didn't have a big "A" on it. There has to be a market for women like me who can appreciate the quality of a real purse and are willing to pay for it. Oh yeah, and I want a real leather laptop case too, but that's another rant for another day. Johanna

I fixed a lot of Coach and Vitton and other designer handbags when we had the shop, and I don't see the quality of the workmanship improving. Cheap hardware, cheap leather or fake leather trim and panels, flimsy snaps and straps- junk. High priced junk. And the ladies wanted them repaired. They carry them for the prestige of the logo and because they match their outfit, not because the bag is practical. Keep me posted with what you come up with, Ed. ~J

I don't like that bag. Everytime you'd need to get into it, you'd have to undo two buckles and straps. Not practical at all. It doesn't look big enough to hold all a woman's junk and a paperback, either. Depth looks good- width doesn't. The hardware with the fancy "R.L." initials is gaudy. Does it even have a shoulder strap? I like the short handles, but they wouldn't be helpful to me. I don't have a free hand to carry my purse and looping it in my elbow is uncomfortable after awhile. The inside pocket is okay, but just one? With no give? In the zippered pocket of my purse are my lifesavers, flash drive, tape measure, chapstick, extra hairbands etc. I need some room to get all that crap in there so I can find it. I like a couple of open pockets so I can find my camera and my cell phone and my MP3 player etc. You can do better, Ed. I like you clean classic and sensible styling. Johanna

Well expressed. ~J

I'm getting older, and my memory may be going, but I think that pic is a piece Billy did for Johann Potgeiter, a South African who now lives here in the US. He is a member here- perhaps he will confirm this? I'm going to drop Billy a note and see if he remembers where the Sheridan Lady ended up. Johanna

I'm moving this to "Leatherwork Conversation". Because it may affect some knife and sheath makers, the subject is certainly relevant, and I trust we can refrain from any name-calling and personal political attacks while we discuss the issues in a constructive way. Ben, you are right, that's what the Off Topic forum says in the description. Mike, you are right, the members said they didn't want political rants. I just got done driving 700 miles, and I'm tired. I'm not going to moderate this thread, just expect everybody to respect each other from here on out. Like always. Johanna

Deno- Your dad was an expert with rocks. If I remember correctly. he did several series with themes for Tandy Doodle Pages. The bear was my favorite in the rocks. Johanna

Finger cuts are done with swivel knives. Johanna

For belts, wristbands and collars, wouldn't it be more cost effective to buy sides rather than double shoulders? Johanna

I ran into this pic tonight and thought it would look cool on leather. Maybe someone will want to try it? ~J

My son had a car trunk (boot) slammed on his head last year, and we went to the ER. As they were sewing him up I thought- "Hey, I can do better stitching than that!" but he never would have held still for that. I hope you mend well, and mend fast, Karl! Best wishes from beautiful Ohio, USA Johanna

Happy Birthday, Bruce! Congrats on the site update- looks terrific. You & Kate did nice work! Johanna

cPanel is only the admin controls for your website, not a web building software. cPanel is where you set up your email accounts, put databases, check your stats and so on, but it doesn't build sites. It will allow you to upload to the server one file at a time, which can be mind numbing, so most of use an ftp client like Filezilla or Cute FTP to upload. You can use free web templates to create a site, then just log in via ftp (not cPanel) and upload it. You can find free web building software, but some of the better programs cost money. If you already have MS Office installed, you can build a site from there. But you build the site with software and upload it all into the public_html file. The home page is usually named ".index". Google "HTML editor" or "WYSIWYG web building software" for a whole lot of choices. The program you had was built into your old webhost- probably billed as a "feature" but it was proprietary to them so that when it was moved, it broke because it depended on their resources to display the content. I'll be home all day after church if I can help. You have my phone number. Johanna

Johanna's method of building a saddle: 1. Buy a horse 2. Contact one of the 2348 people on the board who admit to being saddlemakers 3. Have credit card/check/cash 4. Wait patiently 5. Sign for UPS shipment. Voilà! Done. Johanna

To add to what Mike said, "Search" works the same on Google, too. Welcome to LW! Johanna

So what you folks are saying is that a Kindle is redundant with the technology that exists in our laptops and cell phones. I wonder if I could break the "stuff-the-book-in-my-purse" habit anyway? Thanks for your opinions! Johanna

Two words: "Caller ID". My mom went to the fair and filled out every coupon for every drawing with my name and phone number because I am home to take the calls for when she would win. Bah! We never win anything except dozens of calls who have a legit reason to bypass the DNC list. I don't want to buy siding, an alarm system, a new mattress, be converted to a new religion, lease a car or get home water cooler delivery service. I would have loved to win the bicycle or the new roof, but oh well. If you call me with a "blocked number", I probably won't pick up the phone at all. And if you do pick up one of those sales calls, a quick "No thanks!" and hang up. Don't let them talk, since it is a business line. My dad will always say, "let me go get my wife..." (he's not married) and then set the phone down and go back to whatever he is doing. He says it's an even trade- his time for theirs. Johanna

Does anyone have a Kindle? Like it? Why or why not? Anyone have the DX version? Is it it worth the extra dollars?

Get the book by Bruce Grant called "The Encyclopedia of Rawhide and Leather Braiding". It's worth it. Johanna

I thought I recognized the work. That is Duane Ballard, a very talented guy! Johanna

ericluther- please give us a link to the site that you found this picture on. You never know- the artist may be here already! Johanna

Now that I've seen quite a few of your seats, I have an irresistable urge to flip them over and see what you did on the back. This one is gorgeous, though it's a little hard to see "custom". I like the natural look, of course, and Papa Clutch is gonna love it. That's the most important thing of all. Johanna