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Introductions
If you haven’t met us at a craft show, you might wonder who made these wooden pieces.
Here’s our story—who we are, who we were, how we met, where and how we live now, what we believe in. Also a bunch of pictures for fun.
Meb & Tom
In the middle of the last century, a boy and girl messed about in opposite corners of the New England woods: climbing trees, building forts and exploring the natural world.
Later, we worked at various careers: Tom Vaiciulis in Connecticut as an engineer and designer, Meb Boden in Boston's theater and music worlds. We each married, parented terrific kids, divorced, lived abroad, started over.
Then on a drizzly Halloween night in a Rhode Island grocery store, fate intervened—though Tom still wonders if I really did lock my keys in the bookshop next door, compelling him to drive me home for an extra set!
The following Halloween, we sailed north from Trinidad and discovered we were grand partners at sea. The next sunny years featured Romance amid Caribbean palms and turquoise waters. A state-side wedding in an ocean-side grove. Total eclipse of the sun seen from an active volcanic island. Perpetual repairs on our home—a 35-year-old, all-teak sailboat. International friendships and intrigue. Woodworking and stained glass in our island workshop. For 3 years, I wrote a column for All At Sea, a Caribbean boating magazine, about the trials and wonders of living aboard a small boat. A compilation is in the works. However, we’d made an enemy and, while we visited up North, arson finished off our workshop.
Fortunately we’re “lemonade” kind of people: as in “Wow, that’s a pretty sour lemon—let’s make lemonade!” Now, many lemons later, we‘re back to messing about in the woods. Y2K found us clearing land to build a tiny (150 square feet!), elegant cabin a mile past the last power pole. Worthy partners on land as well as sea, we cut our own firewood, light with oil lamps and commute 3 miles to our rented, on-the-grid workshop.
Our 21-acre homestead is constantly changing with the additions of gardens and pathways, fruit trees and assorted outbuildings. In the spring of 2010, we had a fire in our cabin. We lost our roof, but we are fine and so are our belongings. We're in awe of our local volunteer firefighters. And so grateful to CERF (Craft Emergency Relief Fund) and our fabulous friends who stepped in once again to help us rebuild.
Later, we worked at various careers: Tom Vaiciulis in Connecticut as an engineer and designer, Meb Boden in Boston's theater and music worlds. We each married, parented terrific kids, divorced, lived abroad, started over.
Then on a drizzly Halloween night in a Rhode Island grocery store, fate intervened—though Tom still wonders if I really did lock my keys in the bookshop next door, compelling him to drive me home for an extra set!
The following Halloween, we sailed north from Trinidad and discovered we were grand partners at sea. The next sunny years featured Romance amid Caribbean palms and turquoise waters. A state-side wedding in an ocean-side grove. Total eclipse of the sun seen from an active volcanic island. Perpetual repairs on our home—a 35-year-old, all-teak sailboat. International friendships and intrigue. Woodworking and stained glass in our island workshop. For 3 years, I wrote a column for All At Sea, a Caribbean boating magazine, about the trials and wonders of living aboard a small boat. A compilation is in the works. However, we’d made an enemy and, while we visited up North, arson finished off our workshop.
Fortunately we’re “lemonade” kind of people: as in “Wow, that’s a pretty sour lemon—let’s make lemonade!” Now, many lemons later, we‘re back to messing about in the woods. Y2K found us clearing land to build a tiny (150 square feet!), elegant cabin a mile past the last power pole. Worthy partners on land as well as sea, we cut our own firewood, light with oil lamps and commute 3 miles to our rented, on-the-grid workshop.
Our 21-acre homestead is constantly changing with the additions of gardens and pathways, fruit trees and assorted outbuildings. In the spring of 2010, we had a fire in our cabin. We lost our roof, but we are fine and so are our belongings. We're in awe of our local volunteer firefighters. And so grateful to CERF (Craft Emergency Relief Fund) and our fabulous friends who stepped in once again to help us rebuild.
