Have you ever built a rocking chair? Scrubbed clothes on a washboard? Laid brick for a chimney? Most of us pass such hard work on to machines, or specialists. Why break a sweat if you don't have to? Well, for starters -- it's good for the soul. In this hour of To the Best of Our Knowledge, the joy of "hands on" work. Also, poems from the construction site.

Cathy Davidson teaches English at Duke and is the co- author (with photographer Bill Bamberger) of "Closing: The Life and Death of An American Factory." She tells Judith Strasser about the pride the furniture makers formerly employed by the White Furniture Company in North Carolina took in their craftsmanship and attention to detail. Also, woodworker John Linck makes extraordinary, hard-wood toys by hand in his basement shop. He brought a few into the studio and describes them for Jim Fleming. Linck talks about why his toys appeal to children and adults alike and why he keeps his operation small. You can view his work on his web site at http://www.woodentoy.com/

Susan Eisenberg is a poet and a master electrician who entered the contsruction business in the early days of affirmative action. She tells Judith Strasser about the hostility, and the help, she received from her male colleagues, and what she likes best about her trade. Eisenberg's book about the first women to seek work on the construction site is "We'll Call You If We Need You: Experiences of Women Working Construction." Also, Margaret Horsfield has reported for the BBC, CBC and Manchester Guardian. Now she's written a book called "Biting the Dust: The Joys of Housework." She tells Jim Fleming that how we clean reveals a lot about us; that many people clean when they're upset; and that cleaning can be a way to reclaim personal space.

Wendell Berry is a poet, essayist, novelist and subsistance farmer. His book "Harland Hubbard" is the biography of a farmer dedicated to the simple life. Berry talks with Steve Paulson about the values he shares with Hubbard and describes aspects of his life. He also reads two poems from his book "A Timbered Choir."

Distribution dates:

• week of 05/17/98 - hour 1
• week of 06/06/99 - hour 3