Tooting My Horn

Ok, so what has all this listening and watching and learning done for me?

I started to (re)read journal entries made about our move across the country in 2002 (see justchoosesomething.blogspot.com ) and was amazed at 3 things: 1) we had the energy to do all of that; 2)  the number of "fix-it" things I did 3) our dogs have been getting us up before 6 am for all of these years (and still do). An example from the first day -

The truck (1989 Ford F250 diesel) breaks down just after climbing the hill from Vantage on I-90 on our way to Moses Lake  (towing a 30' travel trailer). Problem: cracked fuel injector line. Solution: happened to have a spare in the tool box so I changed it on the side of the road and we were on our way in about 40 minutes. Why I had a spare I cannot remember. All I will say is that in the last 38+ years of driving I have only been stranded once, and that was in a new car when the computer crashed (that's progress?).

I'm guessing that most people would have simply gotten on their cell phone, called the tow truck, and cancelled the trip, not to mention spending a whole lot of money in the process. I didn't have to because I had been learning from a young age how to do things, and one of those things was working on cars.

My earliest memories of my "training" start with helping my dad around the house. He lived the other American dream - never had the money to do a project unless he worked overtime, and by working overtime never had the time to do the project. But somehow he managed both.

The small rambler style house they had built in 1955 was 2 bedroom and 1 bath. That was ok in 1955 because they only had my sister.  Then I came along. And my sister didn't want to share the bedroom forever. Nowadays people would just sell the house and move to a bigger one. I guess back then that was not an option, so the folks decided to add a room on to the back of the house. About the same time they converted the 1 car garage into a rec-room. These were both before I was sentient, but the point is that dad was a do-it-yourself kind of guy. He wasn't in the construction business (licensed airline mechanic) but knew enough people to ask the right questions about what he needed to know to get things done. Later on, when I was in the helping stage of my life, he converted the carport (previously added next to the converted rec-room) into a two car garage; poured a concrete driveway; dug out a basement - by hand - so that the furnace could be put downstairs instead of the hall closet; and a whole lot more.

If this looks like a tribute to my dad, well I guess it is. Just 27 years too late.

So I guess you see I had a pretty good chance to learn how to do things. And I am so grateful that I took advantage of that opportunity.

Not to mention that when I was 14 we got into cars - specifically Corvairs. Being an airplane mechanic, dad found the Corvair engine to be similar to small aircraft engines that he had worked on. Plus, Corvairs were cheap at the time. My car-to-be was a $50 body, a $25 junkyard engine, and a $75 parts car that was all put together so that when I got my licence at 16 I would have car to drive. Little did we know how that car would change both our lives and give me a chance to learn even more about how things worked - and so much, much more.

Listen and Learn

All of my life I have been a good listener. A good listener learns a lot. Some have called me a "Jack of all Trades and a Master of None". I don't know about that last part, but I do know that I am comfortable around people of many professions and I can do the work of many people. And I credit much of it to listening. I always enjoyed people who talked excitedly about a project they were working on and how they did this and how they did that. It's details I like the most. Not bragging about getting something new or how they did something "fantastic", but sharing about how they did something that they found challenging, or they did because they could and because it needed to be done. Or an experience they had that few others would have the opportunity to have. They would answer questions I asked and sometimes would ask me to work with them on future projects.  

I also listened to people's problems. It's amazing how few problems you have yourself when you hear others talk about their lives. Sometimes I don't know how or why they live their lives the way they do. But I guess it helps them to talk about it, so I do my part in helping.

But now I'm done! It use to be that when people engaged in a conversation they would talk a bit, then listen a bit, and then talk some more. Now it seems that people only want to TALK and TALK and TALK. They never stop talking long enough for someone like myself - polite and courteous - to get a word in edgewise. I blame a lot of it on caffeine. I don't drink products with caffeine very often, but everyone else wakes up in the morning and downs a gallon of Mountain Dew. They think they need it to "get going". Maybe they should try sleeping instead. And exercise! Wait, that's another topic. Back to listening and talking.

I am amazed at how people think that conversation should only include topics about themselves. Maybe they think I'm not really paying attention and that I too think only of myself so that whatever they say will be replaced by my own selfish self-hype. Oh boy, are they wrong. For one thing, they never let me get my thoughts out because they interrupt me when I do try to say something. And that just makes me close up and tune them out. Seems that the older I get the more honest I get with my feelings, so I no longer consider it rude to just walk away from someone when I figure out that they are only talking to me to so that they can brag about themselves, and that they really couldn't care less about me.

Anyway, this blog is my chance to share MY stories and experiences. You can close this anytime you want, but I hope you find some of it interesting and informative. Let me know.
Thanks.