The extreme sort of do-it-yourselfers tick me off. Why? Because they’re just doing it to show off. Now, I figure that I do a reasonable amount of DIY around the house. We built a deck (which, to be honest, does go into that “probably too much” category), poured some cement walkways, and general landscaping stuff. We were thinking about moving, but the only really feasible move to a cheaper house would be out of state, and we’ve shelved those plans for now (no way I’m moving to Tracy and commuting, and the tech writer opening in Orem, UT just wasn’t appealing enough).
So we’ve decided to get back to a few projects around the house. Adding shelves to closets is easy: Just measure, get pieces of the right size, and bang ‘em into the wall. Ok, it’s slightly more complex, but not a whole lot. Adding ceiling lights to the rooms will be a slightly bigger project, largely because I haven’t yet been able to figure out how to make the wiring work. Breaking down a wall and building an alcove with shelves in the hallway…yeah, that’s a bit larger still.
But all of these are merely structural things. They involve wood, plaster, nails, and the whacking of those things with hammers. Almost straightforward, really. Ok, sure, the wiring is something else, but even that is just a matter of hooking up a couple of wires to some other wires. In essence, at least.
We wanted to add some more room by hiring a contractor to build a floor over a large open space on the second floor, but those plans fell through when we had to buy out the co-owner of the house, which led to use thinking seriously about selling the house…anyway, long story, and we weren’t going to build the new floor by ourselves. That plan might still see the light of day, but it would require a long-lost wealthy relative and a surprise inheritance. So, not exactly the sort of thing to put an exact date on.
At any rate, I’ve so far confined myself to projects that require a) digging; or b) banging on with a hammer. Car repair? Too many moving parts, too big a chance of knocking something loose and having an expensive lawn decoration.
Pakeha, though, seems to be at pains to disabuse me of this notion.
He’s already proven to me that changing the oil in my car is not a task best left to highly skilled automotive mechanics. (As a matter of fact, Pakeha, heretically, often claims that such creatures are exceedingly rare, and cannot be found at any random mechanic that one might find, for example, by pulling a random coupon out of the mail.)
Then he went on to prove that I could even change the brakes on my own vehicle. And the vehicle stills works after having done that. Meaning, of course, that the brakes work, the car stops, and all without amusing displays of smoke, oil, or sparks.
Now, however, things are going to get worse. Pakeha has come into possession of what can only be called the NecroAutonomicon: A service manual for the Honda Odyssey. The bastard is going to be doing major work on his car’s engine soon, mark my words. And that, of course, is going to make me feel Do-It-Yourself-ingly inadequate. I’ll have to add a computer, a wireless network, and a couple of DVD players to compete. Then he’ll add the onboard GPS system and chaff dispensers, and I’ll need to add the AWACS-style radar dome and airbrakes…
Damned showoff DIY bastard.