Chaos Theory as the defining force for woodworking is the topic of today's diatribe. Which is to say, that within chaos there is order and that from this order comes the chaos that eventually produces the order that is woodworking. Simple, no?
The problem most woodworkers face is in the attempt to exert control over the inherently chaotic milieu that is woodworking. We begin with one entity, a tree. The tree is broken down into many bits and pieces, possibly even scattered all over the globe. We buy or make the tools with which to alter the shape of the tree bits. The tools are stored or misplaced in containers of all sorts and sizes made of more bits of trees or smelted and formed metallic particles or reprocessed plastic compounds, all of which represent their ancestral containers.
Working wood produces chaos. Working wood produces shavings, chips, chunks, dust, cutoffs, etc., all of which fall into temporary forms of chaos, waiting to be kicked, swept or pushed aside while the work at hand goes on as the worker seeks to form order from the chaos of the operations. Working wood asks for a certain level of chaotic organization in the arrangement of the workspace else the worker suffers from an increase in chaotic flux and a decrease in productivity. Furthermore, the more the worker tries to exert control over the inherent chaos created by the simple acts of working wood, the more chaotic the environment will become. This is known as "The Kirby Effect".
Tool chests and Work shops are, by definition, containers of Wood Chaos. As such, although from the exterior they may appear to be dimensional and perceptual, both are, in fact, of the Nth dimension. Although many a woodworker has attempted to maintain order within what he or she thinks are the limited confines of the chest or shop, the hard truth is that Chaos Theory dictates a different story. Once tools and wood are placed within either entity, they will find their own form of chaotic imbalance. Always moving, always seeking corners to hide in, tools and wood are loathe to see the light. The woodworker may build dividers, stands, tills, shelves, doors, etc, in a vain attempt to control the actions of said tools and wood but in the end, they will find their own levels.
They must. That is the Law of Wood shop Chaos Theory. The more a woodworker seeks to exert form and control over the environment, to instill Order, the more Chaotic things will be, to the point where Chaos will consume all. At which point, the extremes of Chaos will be such that Order will be the only possible result. From this melange of Chaos, this pile of dust, shavings, cutoffs, milled wood, tenons, face sides, dovetails, finishes, etc., comes a finished piece of furniture. Left behind is the Chaos of the wood shop, ready to become One with the floor sweepings, buckets of cut-offs, etc..
The moral of this story is simple. Don't fight the Law of Wood shop Chaos. Embrace it. Work with it. Jeff Goldblum was right.
Till next in Chaos, Gary
