Artist Reply: Thanks, Armando, I only work with iron and steel. They will rust but are much stronger and more traditional.

Artist Reply: Ah, gee, that will go right to my head! Thank you my friend!

Artist Reply: Thank you, Toneeke, are you ready to weld yet?

Artist Reply: Anneke, thank you so much! You have "opened a can of worms" with the phrase: "for the people who attach to their things"! I am so very divided on this issue! I certainly know that we can't take "it" with us when we go, and am really thankful that we don't have that burdon! I know that people do identify by what they possess. I mostly work for rich people and have seen lots of four car garages piled high with so much stuff you couldn't park a car in them, and these same people hire me to build a fence and gate their property. I sometimes wish I could take everyone one the planet to our local landfill so they could see what gets thrown away! Most everything produced today is junk, not even worth the shipping cost. We no longer fix or repair anything, not even our shoes! We use it up and throw it away and we expect this of everything. What I am attempting to do is to create something of value, for my own immortality, something that I can leave behind, something that will outlast me, and something for my customers, my goal is always to create something that is more valable than they paid for it. It is how we get good art, great historical buildings and architecture and that thing passed down from our grandparents! If I made pastries I would not want to make the most but the best! As an artist I get a certain thrill knowing that something I made will out last me, that it is the best I could do, that the customer got good value for his money, and their friends will say, "wow, who made that?!" And, I like the idea that the next welder-fabricator to come along will have a challenge: he has to make something better than I did!

Artist Reply: Thank you Ben! If I were younger I would hire you as my manager!

Artist Reply: Thank you, Ruby, only lost because they have become expensive, and in this horrible economy they are very low in priority! like any art.