Weirdly satisfying

I've been meaning to give this a try for years, and suddenly there I wuz...

A $3 drill kit with an assortment of abrasives hit my door this morning.  When I finished my self-appointed chores, I allowed myself the surprising pleasure of.... polishing a cast iron pan.

5 grit changes and 20 very messy minutes later, I arrived at what I think might be a good finish. Not really mirror, but at least 10x smoother than it began.  It reflects so much light it seems to glow now.

I washed it, dried it well, and rubbed oil all over it.  I'm not seasoning today with the heat and humidity what it is.  Running the oven at 450-500 is contraindicated just now.  That means Herself would hit me.  Again.

I'm looking for a slick and non-stick surface once all is well and done.  Eventually I'll do all the cast iron except the Dutch oven.  I might have to put together a lye bath for the really ugly old pans to get the cooked on coating off.

We will see how this turns out!