Dad is a DIY nut. To the point where he can rewire a house if he really needs to (though that's too involved for him these days). When I was about eight, he liberated a welding kit from the shipyard he worked at, and I'd help him with random welding tasks. Last summer, we re-roofed the garage over a weekend, which was no mean feat since it involved basically rebuilding everything but the walls (it also gave me experience of asbestos disposal). I picked up quite a lot from him.
Was at Ikea yesterday looking for a new computer desk. Current one is too low, knees bang the keyboard tray and keyboard is so low that half the time I miss the fucking space bar. I am not writing stories in CamelCase. Had some ideas but nothing concrete. Then
purplerabbits mentioned that she had a couple of shelves going free. Large bits of wood that are perfect for desktops, with a bit of hacking. Hence jigsaw and drill. Cut one shelf in half lengthwise, possibly trim the rounded edge off the other, lat the two together to make the combined thing wider, using a random bit of chipboard found under the stairs. Then use two old shelf runners to make extension stilts, adding a couple of inches to the height of the new desktop as it sits atop the old one. Keep the monitor where it is in order to keep weight distribution there, add screws to old desktop if it gets really unstable. Boom. Job's a good'un. I'm getting the plane tomorrow night once I get off work and when I get some free time one night I'll smooth up the edges and screw everything together.The masonry drill is masonry for the blind, which is a whole other story. Original was only into plasterboard, only way to get good grip now (as original fell down) is to drill through plasterboard into brick. So it's an excuse to buy a better drill.
Random DIY projects for other people may well ensue (
purplerabbits' kitchen, f'rex), as long as I can find the time.I feel surprisingly macho. And very much like my dad.
