Smoothed and Shaped
The picture you see today is one large part of the tabletop (there are two large – 3’ – and two small – 2’ – sections). The two smaller sections are 
extension pieces. The two previous newsletters on this project detailed formation and connection. In these latter two steps, I dimensioned the top as to thickness, length and width. Now particular aspects begin to be added which conform to the user’s desires (for instance, rounded corners and a slightly rounded over top edge).
Here the project begins to take on a personality. The heavy, bulk work is completed and the finer work steps to the fore.
I worked as a general contractor for a time. Our customers were always surprised by how rapidly the framing, siding and roofing went up. Their hopes of a quicker than advertised finish were raised, only to be dashed. Suddenly, in their view, things slowed down. We were working just as hard. It was that the jobs were smaller and more precise. There were more steps needed to finish any portion of the project.
It’s the same here. It draws on my patience and persistence to complete these steps. The important thing is to keep my eye on the finished project—now only a figment of my imagination. It has to crawl slowly out of my head, through my hands and into the wood. In a way, we are both smoothed and shaped.