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Richard “Dick” DuGong was born in Crystal River, Florida and raised alone by his adoring, if whiskery, mother. He moved up and down the Gulf coast throughout his childhood, where he developed an appreciation of carpentry…primarily docks, piers and trestle bridges, but also the occasional swing set and backyard pergola. Dick loves water lettuce, nuclear power plants, and naps, in that order.
While he lacked access to tools, or even electricity, he’s been a vegetarian since birth, and what is wood but a plant? And if one cannot appreciate that plants can both feed a hungry mammal and securely hold them up out of the water, well then, you can go choke on a plastic bag for all he cares.

food and drink

Kelce Mix + Chamallows: Not Your Mama’s Rice Krispy Treat

Sometimes you get an idea that’s beyond your own comprehension. Some people call it “divine inspiration” and I guess maybe God likes to point a finger at our tiny brains sometimes and shoot something so perfect into our neurons so that we remember our puny place in this big ol’ universe. Is that what happened […]

garage

A RockSolid Polycuramine Garage Floor: What We Learned

We recently refinished our 50-year-old garage floor with Rustoleum’s RockSolid Polycuramine Garage Floor Coating kits, and now we are experts. Riiight. Like most people, a DIY garage floor is, hopefully, a one time project. However, we did learn a few things that might help you if you decide to tackle this kind of project. If […]

garage

What else you’ll need for your DIY garage floor

If you’ve just decided to give yourself a new garage floor, congratulations and good luck. If you’re careful and follow the instructions, you’ll get a great-looking, long-lasting floor that your neighbors will envy. Part of the fun of a diy garage floor is choosing which product to use. We settled on Rust-Oleum’s RockSolid polycuramine, for […]

landscaping, woodworking

Turn an Old Toybox into a Garden Tool Storage Dream

We upcycled an old plywood toybox into a functional garden tool storage box with wood scraps and dollar-bin paint. The box features top plates with two hole sizes so you can easily see, store and access your common tools. The areas in between the plates provide ample space for large and bulky tools like a […]

game room, woodworking

A Cool LED Shelf Anyone Can Make

This wooden LED shelf was an afterthought. As in, I built it after spending way too much time thinking about the shelves for this closet. It’s astonishingly simple, and because I used scraps to make the oak shelf, the total cost was only about $40. Originally, I planned for this space to be a bar […]

food and drink

The Best Time for a Bloody Mary is Now

I like a good Bloody Mary, but I’ll drink a bad one too. I’m drinking one now as a matter of fact. It’s a Saturday morning. What the hell?  I’m not a snob. In particular, I usually want one whenever I’ve got time to kill in an airport in the morning, and that’s where I’ve […]

fireplace, woodworking

Build a Rustic Mantel from Reclaimed Wood

(This article is part 3 of our Fireplace Makeover series.) We built this mantel entirely from a few pieces of rough-sawn lumber pulled out of a recycled building materials yard. Part of the fun of building it was deciding how to combine the pieces while keeping the rustic charm of the wood. Our local yard […]

fireplace

Trading (Fire) Places—A Weekend Fireplace Makeover

Okay, I admit it. It was my fault it took 10 years to finish our fireplace makeover. I was nervous about putting paint on brick. Fortunately, Vag is persistent—very persistent—and I finally relented. The whitewash looks beautiful and maintains the character of the brick. Not counting the guitar and Japanese wood block print, this cost […]

game room, woodworking

Easy DIY Pool Cue Rack

About 15 seconds after we got our pool table set up, we both looked around the room and realized something was missing. We had made sure to get everything we needed to shoot pool, right down to the chalk, but danged if we hadn’t thought about where we’d put the cues. Fortunately, the old scrap […]

game room

Arcade Configuration

(this is the fifth and final article in the series on building a retro arcade table) Now that the construction is finished, it’s time to finally make this game table work. The arcade configuration should really begin before you fully assemble the cabinet, so that you can check that your controls are wired up properly. […]

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