Made by Hand: Searching for Meaning in a Throwaway World Book

In the beginning, I was chuckling at what he took to the island in search of the simple life. I'm still astonished that he went so far, but too much money seems to have hindered his learning many of the simple joys of life, so I guess things balance out. He's a writer who lives around Los Angeles, CA & I've known many city folk who are astonished at the variety of things we do for ourselves right here in the U.S. The divide between city & rural life is mind boggling.

Apparently I was really lucky to grow up on a small, working, family farm. So much of what Mark has discovered is simply putting into words what I've always known. He says it far better than I could, but I did manage to pass the bug along to my kids. I never made much money on it, so I'm jealous of his ability to do so.

I loved the idea for the manufacturer's guide. I agree completely; dis/assembly should be practical, parts lists included, & standard. I grew up fixing & building most everything, so have always looked for that in items I buy, but it's impossible in too many items today. (Yes, I have those 56 bits & a lot more besides.) I also try to buy for quality & use until dead - within reason. He & his wife got new laptops every 8 months?!!! I want their trash, although it seems as if he got the hang of using scraps & has slowed his compulsive consumption down now that he appreciates & understands things more.

It was a lot of fun listening to him learn about building & chickens. He obviously still doesn't know many of the simple tricks, even if he does write/edit/blog about DIY. (He never measured the diagonals of the roof to see if it was square or which way it was out.) Well, he's certainly taking baby steps, but at least he's asking questions, taking advice, & not taking on more than he can handle.

He also has a sense of responsibility & even took a chicken to the vet, (Wow. We'd just eat it.) but he feels bad when he doesn't take proper care of his animals. He does his best not to take on more than he can handle. Perfect! Kudos!!! We've seen so many people move to the country with the idea they're going to raise all sorts of animals & then completely fail. Unfortunately, that often leaves the animals in poor straits; starving or turned loose to fend for themselves. Totally irresponsible!

I'm wondering if he's ever going to add up how much his half dozen chickens cost him. That would be a bad idea, likely working out to $10 or more per egg. Oh well, he obviously has too much money & is learning a lot. Some things are beyond pricing. His sheer joy in learning to do the simplest things by hand is wonderful. (It also makes justifying keeping my shop heated this winter far easier. Thanks, Mark!)
;)

I was astonished at his fear of failure & how he sees it permeating our society. His comments on how to learn & the failures of the "No Child Left Behind Act" were good. He took us far out on the edge with the "No Schoolers", a movement I've never heard of before. They believe kids will learn at their own pace - too far out for me. I don't find the attempt at drawing parallels with 'natural' hunter-gatherer learning compelling or even logical. Not that I'm particularly happy with our current system, but we have a far more complex society. Kids need a basic understanding of what is available &, although it is currently out of fashion, a common set of our society's standards. For all the jokes about them, the Dick & Jane readers they did give generations of immigrant kids a commonality that a nation needs.

The Golden Book of Chemistry Experiments that he mentions downloading from a torrent site is also available here:


The only reason I'm not giving this 5 stars is that there is a bit too much wandering & musing without enough meat. For a novice DIYer or someone who is more like Mark, I think you'll give it higher marks. Still, I recommend it to one & all.

If you have ever thought that you'd like to do more for yourself, read or listen to this book. Mark's small steps are an inspiration. If you want to figure out how to turn someone on to DIY, this is worth reading too, but if you already DIY &/or want a book to teach you any DIY methods, this book isn't it. Instead it focuses on the DIY is good for the soul, something I've known for years, too. While this is a book review & should be about the book, I'm adding my personal endorsement to his below.

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Like Mark, I work with computers all day. They pay well, but don't offer any visual or tactile reward. I work hard all day, but when I walk out of my office, the server room, it looks the same. I go home & do something physical - turn a bowl, fix a fence, or make a toy for my grandson. Even when it doesn't work out, I've learned something & can see what I did - priceless. When it does work out, it's even better, of course.

The balance it has brought to my life is fantastic. I'm too old to want to do hard labor in all sorts of weather all day any more & the pay generally sucks. Not so with computers. I probably spent 7 hours on a couple of wooden puzzles I made for my grandson while the Chinese ones cost about $7 each. No, they're not as nice, but no sane person would pay for the difference in quality. Of course, it's not about that. My great grandfather made a high chair for his kids, the first born in 1897, & my grandson used it this summer of 2014. Wow! It's not fancy, but it's family, solid & reliable. I can only hope that some of my projects will make it as long.

I taught all my kids the basics of mechanics & construction. All left the house with a good set of tools & have done much of their own remodeling on their houses. They all maintain their own equipment. All enjoyed learning & all of them & their spouses have told me how it has helped them. Even if they didn't feel competent to do the work themselves, they didn't get snowed by people giving them quotes or doing the work.

Each of the kids has expanded their knowledge & become far better in some areas than the rest of us. My son-in-law was impressed that my daughter's tool box was bigger & better organized than his. Their first major fight was because he didn't put her tools back properly after borrowing them. Another son is into electronics & another has a magical touch with anything mechanical. We call each other for advice as needed. Anyone who has kids knows how tough it is to find a commonality with them at various ages. DIY projects have always been there for us.

If you want to do more DIY, try the "General Craft & DIY" group here on GR.