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HomeMy WebLinkAboutTimes Advocate, 1991-07-10, Page 11Times -Advocate, July 10, 1991 Page 11 Retired citizens discover constructive hobbies by Rhonda Vandeworp After years of working nine to five, senior citizens who leave their their jobs and enter retirement sometimes find the adjustment a hard one to make. Others, EXETER - Emery Pfaff describes 17:611 himself as a "tink- er," a word that needs little expla- nation if you have visited his home. In the comer of the garage sits his son's motorbike whose broken motor is being "tinkered" on by Pfaff, and set up in the base- ment is a three -rail train set whose maintenance and hand -made. land- scape have for years been "tin- kered" on by the owner until per- fection. Pfaffs favorite creative hobby, however, which occupies most of the daylight hours, is woodworking. Pfaff retired early because of ar- thritis, and for the past five years he has been spending regular working hours in his workshop, grinding, chiseling, and sanding various creations made of wood For the first couple years, Pfaff spent his time perfecting the de- sign for a wooden rocking horse. He explains, growing up on a farm, one acquires a strong appreciation for animals. Pfaff wanted to dem- onstrate this appreciation with his wood carvings. "I always liked animals, especial- ly horses since I was brought up with them. The children had a horse that they rode all the time," says Pfaff. Over the past five years, he has sold a total of seven small rocking horses and one larger one. The sec- ond horse he carved, a waist high swing rocker which now decorates the basement family room, was en- tered into the Exeter Fall Fair the year in which he completed it. Each rocking horse has a leather saddle and has intricate facial de- signs painted on them. Pfaff does alt of the leather work and applies the base coat of paint, while his wife helps him with the finishing touches of paint. Besides rocking horses, Pfaff has designed a number of items within his own home: cupboards, coat rack, wooden trash bin hider, spin- dels for the veranda, and an orna- mental blue heron which he de- signed from a picture. One of his most elaborate crea- tions is a six -seater carousel with wooden horses, ostriches and other beasts on which his grandchildren enjoy riding. Besides carving the wooden animals, Pfaff designed the track underneath the carousel's floor, and managed to make the whole, electrical operation func- tion. The carousel took two years to build. "I worked for a few years as a mechanic and as a carpenter's help- er for the Department of National Defense in Huron Park so I had a pretty good idea of how it had to work," he Pfaff. Pfaff says at the moment he has no plans for any creative work on such a grand scale. "I just do what needs to be done," he admits. Emery Pfaff puts finishing touches on leather saddle. however, like Exeter residents Eric Heywood who has created a garden paradise in his back yard and Emery Pfaff who enjoys carving wooden articles, have dis- covered fulfilling hobbies for which they never had time before. Garden appreciation - After feeding the goldfish in his small, water -lily -covered pond, Eric Heywood takes a moment to enjoy his surrounding garden. EXETER - Eric Heywood has been re- tired for eight years. Since 1987, he has spent many of his sum- mer days designing and caring for a garden paradise, which after four years of planting and natural ex- pansion has managed to cove, eve- ry inch of his 30' by 80' backyard. Being a creative sort, Heywood does not believe in the standard vegetable garden and separate flower beds. He has chosen to in- ter -grow his fruit trees, vegetables and perennials, in addition to in- cluding various unique features such as two small fish ponds, a bird bath, and a soon-to-be sun dial and Japanese Iantem. Fruit trees such as cherry, plums, nectarines, pears, peaches and apri- cots, in addition to grape vines are . dispersed alt around the back yard. An interesting feature of the garden is an "apple hedge" which encircles the fenced in area. After years of trimming and tying down branches, Heywood's apple "trees" have almost completely covered the garden's perimetre. The vegetables in the garden are sometimes hard to distinguish from the flowering plants since they are being grown along side them. But with a closer look, one can find to- matoes, zucchini, potatoes, brussell sprouts, and beets to name only a few. As a decorative touch, Hey- wood has planted rows of onions and carrots along side the foot paths which wind in and out of the garden. Heywood explains in wet conditions he can still work in his backyard since he can reach every point of the garden from these con crete footpaths. No garden would be complete without flowers. Heywood is proud of the various types of peren- nials which live in his backyard, es- pecially the seven -foot lilies whose 75 buds are now beginning to bloom. "With all the flowers blooming, you'd think you were in a funeral parlor!" exclaims Heywood. He admits his garden is just about complete, but still manages to find lots of maintenance jobs to keep his time occupied. In the winter months he enjoys building models of full -sail ships for his grandchil- dren, and in the springtime he and his wife generally travel to foreign lands such as Australia, Tahiti, Eu- rope, Mexico, and the United States. •