Paint Fence, Cut Wood, Pull Weed, Plant Tree - Finding Geek Balance Outside My Comfort Zone
Please forgive me this personal excursion. I had lunch with my friend Greg Hughes yesterday. It's nice when people know you well enough to really grok when something significant happens in your life. The opening part of the conversation at lunch, in person, went something like this
Greg: Hey, great to see you, what's up?
Me: D00d. I bought wood. Like, literally went to the, what's it called? The Lumberyard and purchased actual lumber. Like, trees. Then I cut them.
Greg: Holy crap. What brought this on?
...and the conversation continued in this general vein. He understood immediately. I'm finding balance by moving outside my comfort zone. I'm trying to become "handy" around the house. My previous handy experience was tiling my kitchen backsplash, and this required that I use actual lasers to succeed.
What you need to understand, Dear Reader, is how profoundly not-handy I am to appreciate what I'm trying to do here. My father and brother are handy. I am not. I am not handy in the way that short people are not tall. They aren't. It's just so.
I have never had a hobby that didn't involve computers. This is sad, I know.
I've talked before about how it's important as a Developer to Sharpen the Saw. This is an extension of this. Go outside your comfort zone. I
I try to travel a lot, meet different people, speak their language as a way of going outside my comfort zone. Of course, I speak about computers, so that kind of cancels that out, eh? ;)
Empowerment
When I speak to high-school students and local colleges, I tell them that I like software because of the intense sense of empowerment - the sense that I can do this - it can give you when creating. It seems silly and obvious, but I realize more now that other things can empower oneself. I intellectualized this long ago, but internalized it only recently.
Here's what I'm doing this year to push the envelope for me. This may not make me a better developer, but I hope it'll make me (and subsequently my kids) a better, more well-rounded person. Maybe that'll make me a better developer in some round-about way. I dunno, but I sure feel handy and empowered but in a new an different way.
Planting a Square Foot Garden
One day, last week, it was sunny in Oregon. I looked at the strange yellow ball in the sky and grunted and then I went and bought lumber. I figured this is what people do when it's nice out. I've talked about a garden in the yard for years. This time, I made one.
I got 9 2x12's, and 3 4x4's. The first thing I learned was that 4x4s are in fact not four inches square. Turns out the whole inches thing is just a big lie in the wood world. This was news, but now I feel informed. :)
I ordered the dirt/compost, almost broke myself unloading two yards (not sure why it's called yards, but it was a trailer-load and a lot) and last night we planted our vegetables.
Being Handy Around the House
When I get in over my head with home improvements and things, I usually call my family or a handyman. I've stopped doing that, setup a toolbox and work area and started drilling holes in the wall. I've painted/stained 400 feet of fence, weeded until my hands hurt, and moved giant rocks, all in the last two weeks.
I'm starting to get ideas for other things I want to do around the house. Why, just today, I added two small towel holders in the upstairs bathroom. Changes the whole room, I say! And, as a plus, I did not electrocute myself.
Building an Arcade Console
I checked on Craigslist and found an ancient 1984 Video Trivia Arcade Console. With my friend John Batdorf we took it to the garage and gutted it. I'm putting a PC inside it, and maybe an Xbox and dubbing it the Hanselcade.
This is yet another project that I'd always meant to do, but hadn't because it seemed too large, too complex, too intense to attack. I can attach large, complex and intense computer problems, but this...this was physical.
But, I'd cut wood! I'd planted plants! I just did it. I took uncomfortable action and I started to make plans. What's nice about this project - all of these, in fact - is that they are large, but they can be broken up and aren't time-urgent.
It also kind of involved computers, indirectly, in that there's a computer inside. However, stuff like hooking up LEDs, buying resistors, drilling holes in steel and keeping the whole thing stock and clean - this is all outside my zone of comfort.
The Point
I'm learning, as I always am, but I'm exercising VERY different parts of my brain. I'm reminding myself of things I'd forgotten, and filling in gaps. I'm synthesizing bits of information that I'd thought unrelated into larger solutions. I'm getting a substantial and ongoing sense of satisfaction. I'm realizing that I can be good, well, adequate, at other things that aren't computers.
If there's something you've been meaning to do, especially if it's outside your expertise, go do it now. Pull a weed. Build a fort. Start a blog. Lift a weight. Maybe two.
This must be what having a hobby is like! Ah, to be well-rounded and balanced.
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About Scott
Scott Hanselman is a former professor, former Chief Architect in finance, now speaker, consultant, father, diabetic, and Microsoft employee. He is a failed stand-up comic, a cornrower, and a book author.
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Computers are so much more reliable. Comforting.
The DIY thing is good though. Why only the other month I put up three shelves. One of them is level, too.
* I say "my", I mean the guys who come for a morning every other week. But I sort of own them for that morning.
In a few months, things might change, but right now I'm stuck programming in bed because this apartment is too small.
* Not the same reason at all, now that I think of it. I am handy - I used to be a mechanic (not by choice) and I learned quite a lot there. I can build AH-64A/D helicopters from their smallest parts! But it's still outside my comfort zone, simply because I haven't done any serious building in years.
It's kind of like designing a website for a 1024 pixel monitor. Once you account for the scrollbar and other screen crap, you're limited to about 980 pixels of usable space. But people still call it a "1024 design".
...and two yards of soil is NOT a lot :)
At the MVP Summit 2009 you told me that a developer must develop. This development can be in any area. Like you I also like to do yard work and have been doing it for the past 6 months. I think it is important for all of us to jump out of the programming chair and exercise different parts of our creative mind.
Although my vegetable garden (tomato) is not a square garden but it is pretty decent.
http://azamsharp.com/Posts/188_Yard_Work__Creating_a_Section_for_Vegetable_Gardening.aspx
Then when I got home, I had to get online to see if there are any tiller best practices :)
But spot on, good post.
A word of warning from someone who is the resident geek and handyman of our house: There are two things I don't touch; electrical and plumbing (and preferably not at the same time). Always call a professional for these two things. They are insured in case something goes wrong.
Working with wood can be incredibly satisfying, especially given all the geometry that can be involved. I've built a fence, a dock, and a backyard patio in the past. Every time, I was forced to remember my days crunching distances and angles in high school. It was great mental food for my inner geek.
A blog post entitled, "Hanselman's Ultimate Geek Guide to Handyman Tools" would be great. For me, I started out with a toolbox, a (good) electrical 18v drill, a racket set, a hammer, a work bench, a laser level, and a table saw. Since starting my "side career" as a handyman, I've added a power washer, a hacksaw, a stud finder, and an assortment of wrenches. In the beginning, I had no idea what some of these were or why I needed them. This (of course) changed as I took on bigger projects.
Wishing you continued success in your endeavors.
I love software development and decided to do it for a living, but I've always had an interest in woodworking -- the same as I did with Legos when I was a kid (and still with my kids today). I think it boils down to creating or building something -- Carl Franklin always mentions this (by the way I, too, play guitar, but as a hack compared to Carl!) Very satisfying when you've completely finished a built-in bookcase that matches what you've drawn up. Since being a homeowner, I've become quite handy. I do electrical (except for most stuff at the panel), plumbing (except for soldering copper pipe), tile, replacement windows, etc. I found motivation to learn these things primarily because I didn't want to pay to have this stuff done -- I watched the plumbers and electricians and read books. Now with kids, I weigh the value of my time against the cost of paying somebody.
One thing I found, Scott, is that becoming handy certainly gives you an appreciation for the people who do this work professionally. Enjoy it!
Oak, walnut, birch, and other lumber for furniture is measured in 'quarters' for quarter of an inch. So 4/4 is four quarters, or 1" thick. That is of course rough cut. If you want a 1" thick board finished, you will have to get a 5/4 and surface plane (or if you ar a neanderthal, hand plane) it to 1". And of course you will be charged accordingly. That lumber you par for by the 'board foot', a board 1" X 12" X 12". So a 5/4 board 12" square is actually 1.25 board feet.
I was a custom home builder in my previous life, some 15 years ago. Did that for 14 years before I went back to school to get a degree at 40. Some of the best days were when you could stand back and see that you accomplished.
Jay
But yeah, if you want healthy soil, healthy veg', and a healthy meal, keep those chemicals away!
My last handyman project was a couple years back, but a resounding success. The burner in the gas oven had died. I ordered a replacement and installed it. Sounds easy enough, but I essentially had to take out most of the oven's guts to get to the spot where it was installed. My wife came into the kitchen, saw the oven virtually dismantled and the pieces covering the floor, and gave me one of those looks like, "I hope you know what you're doing because I would like to bake again at some point in my life." Nothing more exciting than putting everything back together and having it work the first time! :-)
http://community.irritatedvowel.com/blogs/pete_browns_blog/archive/2007/08/14/Kitchen-Renovation-Update.aspx
Pete
Now all you need is a live webcam poiting at your veg-beds so you (and we) can keep an eye on them!
Beware though, if you ever start your own composting for your garden -- it quickly becomes an obsession.
Good luck on your projects!
If you're interested in woodworking you ought to talk to Eric Sink. He even wrote a WPF 3d woodworking app.
Love your blog, especially the '1st Life' posts like this or your travels in South Africa.
I'm about half way through renovating my house in inner Sydney and have learnt a lot -- I'm building a new kitchen and bathroom where my living room used to be and vice versa!
Like a good application, make sure your lower tiers are good! Separation of concerns is good although loose coupling is not always what you want...
If only there was NUnit for tiling or rendering [that's rendering walls not UI] I guess there is - it's called a spirit level!
Sometimes the geek can't be restrained -- I'm using an Arduino microcontroller to operate the solenoids on the hacked toilet cistern..... then there's the LED lights, the data cable ducts I've hidden in the walls... and the embedded kitchen PC, the webcam on the chimney... oh dear!
Oh come on ... Dungeons and Dragons? Don't deny it!
=). Congrats on the move into the world of dirt and splinters and manly injuries on your hands.
I think these two things might sum things up perfectly ?? (btw work-safe).
(image) <a href="http://www.xkcd.com/572/" title"Happiness">Happiness</a>
(image) "Off I Go Then"
:)
... I don't aspire to "handiness" anymore...
Chris
I balance my computing mostly with sewing. It's kind of like programming sometimes, you need to do things in the right order sometimes, but then again you need to do some improvising when things didn't go exactly as planned.
Those of you living in apartments or condos might check it out as well. You'd be surprised what you can grow on a balcony.
I just built my first two boxes so it's all a little theoretical, but it's quite easy and the system makes a lot of sense.
I'll refrain from a pedantic explanation of the lumber dimensioning system... reminds me too much of my years in the sawmill.
WOW very impressive! Wanna get real butch? I'll take you fishing sometime! Lemme know, Jack
I think it is important for me to step out of the intellectual and into the physical, or serious stagnation may result. Cool stuff.
Another interesting idea for folks living in apartment buildings/condos, or other non-yard having spots is the parking space garden. I read about this somewhere recently, but I can't find the article to link to... I'll try to describe it.
Basically, the news article was about a girl here in Portland who lived in an apartment and didn't own a car, but had a parking space allocated to her regardless. So she went out and built a planting bed with a plywood bottom, set it on legs like a table, with big wheels on the legs -- Perfectly sized to fit in her parking space. So instead of parking a car there, she parked a car-sized mobile garden there.
Even better - since the parking lot didn't get very good sun during the day, each morning she'd wheel it over across the street to the sunny spot and leave it 'parked' there, and then wheel it home to her parking spot at night, and cover it with a tarp...
Building that wouldn't be much more challenging than building a traditional raised bed, and you could turn that parking space into an awesome garden, and maybe find yourself getting coverage in the local news for it!
Anyhow, I have re-purposed the majority of my yard's square footage to growing food, and we now have roughly 500 sq ft tilled and planted, with the first shoots coming up out of the rows this week.
Since buying this house a year and a half ago, I've re-done all of the wiring, taken out tons of lathe and plaster walls and replaced them with drywall, removed all the lead paint in the house with a heat gun and scraper, replaced all the plumbing with new copper pipe and repaired or replaced all the waste lines, took the bathroom to the studs and made a new one, rebuilt the porch, rebuilt the garage's back wall, installing a new sliding door and siding, and I'm now about to pour a foundation for an addition that I'll start building this week. Oh and we're moving the basement stairs, and installed a new attic stair, and replaced two windows, and put on a new roof, and installed a gas furnace, ducting and a central AC unit. Probably some other stuff I forgot.
Ummm... yeah. All that fit into the extra hours outside of my 60 hours a week software development gig... and practicing and performing with my band, and having two children (new! 2.5yrs and 9 months).
I think my brain has had quite enough exercise... At some point I hope to finish everything up and vegetate for about 3-4 years, smoking pot and playing x-box all day.
We all have dreams in life.
Last comment was me.
Anthony said, "Next you'll be flying Greg's plane. What un-comfort zone would that be in? :-)"
Yeah, so when are we gonna do that??? How's Friday afternoon look for ya? :)
Gotta offer a gardening "hack" for your raised beds.... Nail a copper strip around the outside of each of your raised beds. The slugs won't cross the copper strips (slug krytonite?) and your garden will have one less mongral hoard feasting on your veggies.
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