Education by: association, aggravation, assimilatioll . . .

By Ken Thim

THE learning for me began about a half-century ago I in the forests and mills of the Pacific Northwest. First as a young fellow exploring what were then the omnipotent timber stands of Douglas fir, hemlock, spruce, pine and cedar. Subsequently I joined the Weyerhaeuser organization and cut my timber teeth in the sawmill at Enumclaw, Washington. (Where, or What, is an Enumclaw?)

My Dad and I contributed to the denuding of the lush and lavish natural resources (before the era of reforestation and tree-planting) and it never excited me at all to return to the skeletal remains of a once proud and flourishing industry. If none of the foregoing relates to the title, then possibly the following might:

(a) Education by Association

So much of what I have been able to learn about our business has been with the help of my associates, contemporaries, colleagues and peers who have been willing to share their diverse abilities and infinite talents. Many have been more places and seen more things than I'd be able to in my remaining years.

Rule No. I

Draw on the knowledge of those you know to bolster and fortify your position in whatever field of endeavor you pursue. My father made sure to tell me that listening was a far better learning process than talking, although I confess to having abused that philosophy on a few occasions.

(b) Education by Aggravation

Having been tortured on many occasions by my own shortcomings, and outraged at myself for a hastily-put-together decision, I'm certain that many others must have learned by their own errors of omission or commission. Not having the patience to hear out someone's conversation because of semantical misunderstandings is foolhardy. Alexander Graham Bell neglected to include a course in diplomatic behavior with his invention and some of the great misunderstandings of history have surely taken place on the telephone. Patience is a virtue, but it takes a good bit of cultivating before it flowers to maturity.

Rule No. 2

Author Thim is o frequent contributor to The Merchont Magazine. A longtime industry member, he is employed by Genstar Building Materiols in Los Angeles, Cq. - ed.

Before you start out each day let the mirror reflect judgment, patience, good taste and prudence. We can't expect to aggravate those we encounter in life and not be provoked in return. It isn't necessarily

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Oak ls Top Table Wood

Oak continues to dominate the occasional table market with arating of 29.10/o at the Summer Furniture Market in San Francisco, Ca., according to a survey by Dave McCullam, Northwest Hardwoods, Inc., Portland, Or.

Although this figure was l09o lower than last year, it still put oak ahead of ash and elm with 2o/o and pine with 890. Alder dominated in 3 9o of the displays, but was often used as the solid parts with fine burls and veneer combinations. Birch and maple were ranked at 2.7t/o with cherry climbing to 4t/o from 3.390 last year.

Mahogany registered 6.2t/o , walnut 5.790, pecan-hickory, 3.890. Burls including olive ash, mappa, myrtle, walnut, carpatheum elm, maple and redwood reached 8go, slightly down from last year. Other woods were tabulated at 5.290 with teak, yew and prima vera popular.

Tell

f,ll Eearl Lunber Go., Inc.

Wholesale Distributors of Redwood Products lntroduces.

Until All Heart Lumber Company became aware of Penof in, the most diff icult situation we faced as a seller of premium redwood and cedar sidings was the question, "What should we use on the wood to preserve its natural color, grain and beauty."

A simple survey of end users, painting contractors, wood dealers, and architectg today indicates an extremely acute need for a natural wood finish that keepr lto nromiges.

All Heart Lumber is honored to Dresent to the forest products industry a wood finish for the 21st Century.