Greetings from Bozeman, Montana... I didn't waste any time immersing myself into day to day life here. First stop mexican food at la tinga. Oh yes. the best kept secret in bozeman right on main street. Authentic rice and beans burrito for both of us. yum yum. Off to meet Chris Olsztyn, owner of BT Timberworks , to pick up a restored antique door transformed into a dining table. We learned about the old world oxidation process for "staining" wood using potassium permanganate. Once the medium is applied to the wood, oxygen changes the color from a red to a deep rich mahogany color. This is an amazing process and I kept wondering how I can work this process into collage or assemblage or even fabric, huh? It is quite a substantial dyeing process. Not only does he work primarily with reclaimed wood such as frasier fir, ( he said that is what america was built with) he has a complete metal working facility on site. Much of his work is timber frame, however his shop also builds huge tables and railings for some of the biggest ranches in the west.



As I wondered around his property several things became photo worthy, such as this dumpster of goodies.... Is there something in there that I need? Another thing caught my eye and I couldn't leave without taking this picture of this very simple handle attached to this metal. Not a work of art for anyone else but it certainly makes for a great picture.
After a little rest back at Jonquil's house we headed to Plonk, a wine bar on Main Street in Bozeman. THIS is "the place to be" in Bozeman ( if there is such a place) and of course, like mother like daughter we talk to everyone. For some reason I turned to the 4 people sitting next to us and asked them if they lived here . Only one said that he did and one lived in Great Falls and was partner in a law firm there but he went to Bozeman High School and was native american and grew up on a reservation, played football, got a scholorship on football at Dartmouth and the rest is history... Jack Manning, law partner with offices in Great Falls, Canada, Europe and Asia.