Some things will never change...

[JudyK-JAY22rb]

I come to this forum to seek advice, read about stuff and bounce ideas, as well as have a nice laugh with good people.
I've said before, my camper is mine, my truck is mine, both items off limits to my husband. He is not handy and not only that, we do not work well together. He is impatient, gets frustrated easily and has no 'mind's eye.'

I was in the driveway/side yard doing my 'move the battery disconnect switch' project. I needed a set of hands (well, thought I did.) Just as he was pulling in, I called him over. I explained, 'While I hold this, drive this screw into place.' He picked up the drill and IMMEDIATELY became frustrated. He tried several times, huffing, puffing, becoming impatient. He could NOT drive that screw. Finally I said 'Forget it. Get away. Go, just go...I'll get it.' He happily obliged. I looked at him and said, after all these years I have not learned my lesson and neither have you.

I had to laugh. The other day was our 31st wedding anniversary. People can change a lot in that many years BUT sometimes, some things never change.

 

[Jayhawk 29]

As a rule there are two things that's well known. As a rule you cannot train a cat or train a man. But I am an exception to the rule. I trained my wife and she does not have to go to any continuing education classes similar to the healthcare field providers. It works every single day now after a combined 52 years together, to tell me what to do.

But quite the contrast, she is the best gopher known to mankind. [opps, in the voice of Steve Urkel, did I say that?] I guess I am more than lucky. She knows about thread types, screw head types, washers and nuts, and most all types of plywood and the need for certain veneer counts.

She has helped me over the years to build a variety of boats and ask me what she can do when I am involved in most any project.

But I will tell you that a screw gun is off limits. Unlike the tool that has transformed the world of fastening from the yankee drill and the chuck drill, keep that one out of her hands unless you want more stripped screw heads and surface dings in and around the surface that she is attempting to operate any fastener into their appointed location. And yes we still tell each we love each other even as we storm off on occasions with smoke from our ears.

So your situation is standard operating procedure. Keep asking until you beat him into submission. Within a few more years you will have him eating out of your hand and saying "Yes Dear" . Or threaten to send him off to RV boot Camp. That will get his attention.

 

[Grumpy]

I had to laugh. The other day was our 31st wedding anniversary. People can change a lot in that many years BUT sometimes, some things never change.

But sometimes they do... At our son's first married Chirstmas he was given a battery drill kit and his wife got a Keurig.. Shortly after they opened them they quickly switched which created some laughter. After a few years things changed and now they both do the household repairs.

Despite the fact that I or my father never called a handyman, he just wasn't interested in learning when he was younger.

 

[JudyK-JAY22rb]

As a rule there are two things that's well known. As a rule you cannot train a cat or train a man. But I am an exception to the rule. I trained my wife and she does not have to go to any continuing education classes similar to the healthcare field providers. It works every single day now after a combined 52 years together, to tell me what to do.

But quite the contrast, she is the best gopher known to mankind. [opps, in the voice of Steve Urkel, did I say that?] I guess I am more than lucky. She knows about thread types, screw head types, washers and nuts, and most all types of plywood and the need for certain veneer counts.

She has helped me over the years to build a variety of boats and ask me what she can do when I am involved in most any project.

But I will tell you that a screw gun is off limits. Unlike the tool that has transformed the world of fastening from the yankee drill and the chuck drill, keep that one out of her hands unless you want more stripped screw heads and surface dings in and around the surface that she is attempting to operate any fastener into their appointed location. And yes we still tell each we love each other even as we storm off on occasions with smoke from our ears.

So your situation is standard operating procedure. Keep asking until you beat him into submission. Within a few more years you will have him eating out of your hand and saying "Yes Dear" . Or threaten to send him off to RV boot Camp. That will get his attention.

That's very funny and aweome too, that she has learned all she needs to know to be a good helper to you in your projects. My husband is definitely a gopher but NOT for the materials I need. If I were to wake up at 3am and express a desire for something special, ie: a sandwich from Burger King. He's let out a sigh, say "I suppose you want me to go get you one?" Then obligingly, go out and get it. It's a shame he's not good (like your wife) at recognizing things in the hardware an fastener dept.

 

[JudyK-JAY22rb]

But sometimes they do... At our son's first married Chirstmas he was given a battery drill kit and his wife got a Keurig.. Shortly after they opened them they quickly switched which created some laughter. After a few years things changed and now they both do the household repairs.

Despite the fact that I or my father never called a handyman, he just wasn't interested in learning when he was younger.

My husband has never had an interest in repairs of fixes. His father is a master at all things. That man can fix anything and is a master electrician. It's a shame we don't have close contact with him. He's just always sooo busy with work and 'tending' to his wife (that's a whole different story.) I feel I've missed an opportunity with my FIL, to do fun projects and to learn some good basic electrical knowledge. My own father passed away 13 years ago. I would learn anything I could from him. I was always the little kid who wanted to play with the trucks, toy race tracks and tools, watching all the projects he would do around the house. By the time he was 70, he became my job foreman in a sense. He would sit in a chair and direct the project and me, from there. He was good at directing and explaining. He was a master welder at Electric Boat, General Dynamics. My step mother became the first master welder at the same shipyard by 1985. He didn't have need or opportunity to weld at home. It's one of the skills I REALLY wished he could have taught me. He used to talk to me about welding and the types of welding and what he had to teach his students at work. He knew who I was by the time I was 4 years old. for Christmas he bought me a die-cast Buddy-L pick-up truck. It was pink with clear plastic crates in the back filled with plastic kittens, Pink Kitty Kennel truck.... OMG I LOVED that truck.

 

[OnTheGo]

We do "OK" when we work togeter, but first we have to decide on who takes the lead.

We had close neighbors (both recently deceased) that when they worked together it sounded like they hated each other. They had a great long term marriage, just couldn't work together without using their full vocabulary. It amused me because they didn't change when I was working outside.

And those folks seeking a "perfect" relationship never seem to find it.

 

[Jayhawk 29]

There is welding and then there is the art of welding. A good friend that does tee tops in particular for open runabouts is such an artist and still uses a stick welder. His beads look like uniform drops of solder, so to speak, one on top of each other, perfectly offset.

These days welders can name their price. Fewer young people are taking us that needed skill and taking it to a level that shows pride that few people look at closely. If you lived on a farm, you had better have some welding skills if you kept your equipment in working other.

This is becoming a problem with the commercial shipyards to get enough experienced people that needed in this profession. Rosie the Riveter is probably something that draws a blank when some of us older folks speak about.

Mike Rowe created scholarships for alternative useless college degrees, if you are willing to go into the mechanical field. Electricians , Plumbers and HVAC all will still be needed in the future. Six figure salaries is fairly standard with no long term debt.

In conclusion, [sorry stepping down on my soapbox after this] working with your hands is a true dirty word to the max in 2025. But some of us still love it even as the old body rejects some of the requirements needed, like simple bending. In my youth I always wondered why Ben Gay in the menthol smell flowing thru the house was standard .

 

[JudyK-JAY22rb]

We do "OK" when we work togeter, but first we have to decide on who takes the lead.

We had close neighbors (both recently deceased) that when they worked together it sounded like they hated each other. They had a great long term marriage, just couldn't work together without using their full vocabulary. It amused me because they didn't change when I was working outside.

And those folks seeking a "perfect" relationship never seem to find it.

I think we were your neighbors. You gotta work it, like anything else.

 

[JudyK-JAY22rb]

There is welding and then there is the art of welding. A good friend that does tee tops in particular for open runabouts is such an artist and still uses a stick welder. His beads look like uniform drops of solder, so to speak, one on top of each other, perfectly offset.

These days welders can name their price. Fewer young people are taking us that needed skill and taking it to a level that shows pride that few people look at closely. If you lived on a farm, you had better have some welding skills if you kept your equipment in working other.

This is becoming a problem with the commercial shipyards to get enough experienced people that needed in this profession. Rosie the Riveter is probably something that draws a blank when some of us older folks speak about.

Mike Rowe created scholarships for alternative useless college degrees, if you are willing to go into the mechanical field. Electricians , Plumbers and HVAC all will still be needed in the future. Six figure salaries is fairly standard with no long term debt.

In conclusion, [sorry stepping down on my soapbox after this] working with your hands is a true dirty word to the max in 2025. But some of us still love it even as the old body rejects some of the requirements needed, like simple bending. In my youth I always wondered why Ben Gay in the menthol smell flowing thru the house was standard .

I've seen some of that skilled welding work...looks like perfection. If I could roll back time I'd be one of those kids going for a career in the trades...I know I'd be a master at something by now.

I do master what I do for work, now (nursing) that's for sure. I've received comments from others that say I make it look easy. At least I can say that.

 

[JudyK-JAY22rb]

There is welding and then there is the art of welding. A good friend that does tee tops in particular for open runabouts is such an artist and still uses a stick welder. His beads look like uniform drops of solder, so to speak, one on top of each other, perfectly offset.

These days welders can name their price. Fewer young people are taking us that needed skill and taking it to a level that shows pride that few people look at closely. If you lived on a farm, you had better have some welding skills if you kept your equipment in working other.

This is becoming a problem with the commercial shipyards to get enough experienced people that needed in this profession. Rosie the Riveter is probably something that draws a blank when some of us older folks speak about.

Mike Rowe created scholarships for alternative useless college degrees, if you are willing to go into the mechanical field. Electricians , Plumbers and HVAC all will still be needed in the future. Six figure salaries is fairly standard with no long term debt.

In conclusion, [sorry stepping down on my soapbox after this] working with your hands is a true dirty word to the max in 2025. But some of us still love it even as the old body rejects some of the requirements needed, like simple bending. In my youth I always wondered why Ben Gay in the menthol smell flowing thru the house was standard .

BTW, YES. Electric Boat in Groton, CT is desperate for young workers to come and learn trade skills!