Going Against the Grain
In John's Words
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My name is John Pollman and about three years ago I was diagnosed with LOTS. It was a major shock to me, but I was initially told that I had ALS. Tay-Sachs is no fun, but I'll take it over ALS!
I've been a woodworker most of my life and I really enjoy it. I hadn't done a whole lot of it the past few years leading up to diagnosis. But I will say that I think woodworking may have saved me. Not long after diagnosis I was deeply depressed, as you can well imagine. After a couple months of sitting around worrying about what symptom was coming next. I decided to try to find something to get my mind off of LOTS and I turned back to woodworking.
To tell you the truth, LOTS doesn't affect my woodworking skills too bad so far. I've still got
pretty good dexterity in my hands even though the weakness in my hands and triceps is noticeable. But I'm working through it and I just take a break when I need one. A few months ago I saw that my friend Jessie needed a bench (pictured, left) for her new bathroom. I found a design that looked perfect and got to work. (Read more about Jessie's bench below.)
What I love about woodworking is that when I am working on a project, and this may sound strange, but I don't feel like I have LOTS! I'm able to immerse myself in my work and forget about my problems. I'm hoping to be able to find a way to market my work so that I might be able to use it to bring in a few dollars because my days working in the trades are numbered.
I will find a way to beat LOTS and live life on MY terms!
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