It was during High School that I began to take Art classes at the local Adult Education school. I never got to take an art class in High School, but because of my mom’s interest in oil painting, I was exposed to some of these night classes. As it turned out, one of the guys who taught oil painting, Pat Martin, also taught antique furniture restoration. He had worked at Hearst Castle and was super skilled. His teaching style took some getting used to as he would just tell you one step of the process and not tell you the next step until you had finished the previous one to his satisfaction. Many of his students did not like his Napoleonic style, they thought he was a pretentious prick. I liked him… got along with him famously. I think he took a shine to me when I took him aside and told him, “People would like you better if you weren’t such an asshole all the time.” Sometimes honesty is the best policy. I restored some antique clocks, and a beautiful Circassian Walnut dresser in his class. I also took classes from a very nice man named Tom Vecchio. He taught me how to use a potter’s wheel and made throwing even the most difficult vessels seem easy. I’m not at all certain I have either of these gentlemen’s names spelled correctly, but I did learn a great deal from each and wanted to call them out and say thanks for their place in my development as an artist and craftsman.