if something breaks, leaks or needs to be built in our home, i don't pick up the phone to call for quotes. the first thing i do is ask my handyman, christopher, if he is interested or up for the task. most of the time he is. it doesn't matter if it's something he's never done before, if he has the time and/or is willing, there's a pretty good chance he'll figure it out. what i find interesting is his father isn't handy at all, so it's certainly not genetic. as a child and even several years into my marriage, i assumed ALL men were handy. silly me, i was young and naive. i'm glad christopher didn't assume i could cook or he would have been sorely disappointed.
i grew up in a home where my dad fixed anything and everything - and i mean everything. saving money was probably his biggest motivation, but i'm sure he also found satisfaction in it as well. he'd figure out most anything and exhaust every avenue before he picked up the phone to have some 19 yr old kid bring him a $10 part and charge him $150 for labor and the service call. i could almost see the steam coming from dad's head. somewhere along the line, he even went as far as fabricating some parts too. yes, my dad is amazingly handy and that's what i was used to. my mom emailed a few days ago to tell me he did some electrical work for an elderly woman in their neighborhood - and she paid him for it. this isn't the first time she's mentioned him lending his skills to a neighbor.
i didn't consciously looked for 'handiness' in my future husband, but maybe on some level, i knew i wanted a man who was intelligent, logical, resourceful and maybe even a little frugal - just like my dad. i found those characteristics in christopher. i've learned a few things since my early years of marriage.
i've learned:
- all men aren't handy and some are as mechanically challenged as i am
- that living in an old house means there are always projects to do
- i've saved tens of thousands of dollars over the years having a handy man in my life
- i'm lucky to have a handy hubby
below is a picture of the soccer goal he built for finn two saturday's ago. he wasn't satisified with a store-bought goal from target or sports chalet. it needed to be higher quality and built for longer use so that finn can use it in 5+ years (did i mention he's super practical)?
he invited finn to join him on this project and they had a great morning together. my only request, that it wouldn't be too large to move behind the cottage to get it out of site when entertaining. he obliged. ;)
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| finn tests out his new goal (there IS a net - hard to see ) |
