This is the computer table/TV tray I’ve been working on, complete with sliding panels and detachable legs.

My computer is an old, overheating piece of crap.  For the past 2-3 years, I’ve had to always have it sitting halfway on a book so that the shitty fan can actually circulate enough air into the thing.  If it sat flush with the table, then it would overheat in less than 30 minutes and crash.  So instead of springing for a new one, I decided to make a table with a slotted side that would hopefully provide enough ventilation.

I made the tray to have sliding dual panels because I wanted to able to use this as a normal table as well, and I thought would be a kick-ass addition/challenge.  The inscription of the famous lines from Robert Frost’s “Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening” was another fun challenge.  I used a router to carve out the letters (which I LOVE using by the way) and tried to fill the holes with polyurethane to create a smooth feel with an inscribed look (which was a lot more trouble than it should have been).  It took a week or two longer to get the polyurethane to the point that I wanted it.

It’s not perfect, but it’s mine.  I cut some corners that I probably shouldn’t have, but overall I’m actually happy with it.  Most times I find myself cutting corners and still expecting perfection, which ultimately leads to utter disappointment and failure.  I’m trying to teach myself that perfection should always be the goal, but never the expectation.

I’m still in what I consider my “first semester” of woodworking, having only attempted and completed two projects.  I still have a whole world to learn, most of which I plan on learning through trial and error (I could take a class, but it’s much more fun this way).