: My Dad got me a Skil brand 5" ROS for Christmas. It's the only tool I
: could think of that I needed before I start boatbuilding.

: My mother-in-law got me a $50 gift certificate from Lee Valley Tools. I can't
: decide what to spend it on - there are so many options, most of which cost
: much more than $50. Any suggestions?

A powerful dremmel, with a foot pedal for variable power feed and lots of different tips. It will come in very handy during the boat building process.

: My wife & I are planning on getting each other a kayak kit (Waters
: Dancing Solace 16LT) as our Christmas present but she's not letting me
: order it until some of our house renovations have been finished up. So
: over the holidays I need to get shelves up in the garage, baseboards on in
: several rooms, a hallway painted, the kitchen backsplash tiled, the
: bathroom painted & tiled, a leak coming from inside the (newly
: renovated) bathroom wall fixed, etc. Then maybe in a couple weeks she'll
: let me get the kayak.

I had the same deal. I still haven't finished the kitchen yet nor is the boat done, so at this point I'm in the clear. I'll be finishing up the kitchen in January. I've been waiting for a new kitchen counter to be delivered. Well, it has arrived so now the real finishing work must begin.

You'll love the Solace design, I sure wish I had one. I guess that is something I'll have to save up for once I get my other projects done. Building a SOlace will be very superfluous though, I'll have four boats done by the time I consider building one.

Robert N Pruden