Why are some people utterly useless at fixing and doing things?

a reply to: nonspecific

It looks the same to me sometimes. It's like mission creep and the ambitions of high technology life-styles are making us helpless.

I'm a shirt and tie professional who also builds/repairs roofs, fits windows and is very happy filling skips on a nice day. I know the basics of old car engines and would sooner do something myself if it isn't too specialist.

That older generation are admirable for having educations that taught them practical skills and encouraged the curiosity to want to know. Maybe it's that curiosity that we aren't instilling these days?

I find that by appearing useless at fixing things, there's always someone who will help and show off their own dIY skills for a cup of tea. It's a win win. I get my stuff fixed you get a cup of tea and maybe more if your lucky

originally posted by: woodwardjnr
I find that by appearing useless at fixing things, there's always someone who will help and show off their own dIY skills for a cup of tea. It's a win win. I get my stuff fixed you get a cup of tea and maybe more if your lucky

I had a barny with my ex once when she said she could not change a flat tire.

When I asked what she would do if she got a flat tire she said she would stand next to the car and look like a woman who needed help and wait for a man to come and do it for her...

a reply to: nonspecific that's because Mrs non specific is clever and understands men's egos to impress a woman in destress. I'm not a proud man. Infact I would be happy for a lady to change a tire for me. Saves me getting my hands dirty

originally posted by: woodwardjnr
a reply to: nonspecific that's because Mrs non specific is clever and understands men's egos to impress a woman in destress. I'm not a proud man. Infact I would be happy for a lady to change a tire for me. Saves me getting my hands dirty

This was my ex not MNS, MNS knows how to change a tire and more, she is old school and from Blackburn.

Proper woman.

a reply to: nonspecific

That's what my mother would do back in the old days. She had no idea of how to change a car tire. I remember one occasion when she had barely gotten out of the car before a couple of young men in a truck pulled over and changed it for her. And they wouldn't accept any money at all for their labor.

But that was about 50 years ago. I wouldn't recommend it these days. Sometimes the "bad guys" are just waiting for someone who appears to be helpless. The end result could be anything from robbery to murder.


I love to build and repair things. I'll even spend time fixing some of that import junk that fails within a few months to a year of purchase. I just hate to throw anything away because I'm a hoarder of sorts.

Nowadays we have the Internet. You can get information on just about anything. If you can read and understand, and aren't afraid of getting your hands dirty, the vast majority of broken items can be easily repaired. But as you said, you have to decide if it's worth the time to tinker with it or just buy a new one.

I also love to build things from scratch. Initially I convince myself that I'll save money by going the DIY route. Of course the end result is that I will invariably spend more money than buying the item new. But the sense of satisfaction and the amount of new knowledge that I've gained is always worth the price.

-dex

originally posted by: nerbot
a reply to: nonspecific

We (in the western world) are growing up in a place where young people (urged by parents) wish to go to college and university to qualify for jobs that earn high incomes. When an individual focuses on one aspect of their future so intensely they limit their abilities beyond that focus to the point that everyday tasks seem difficult.

People like myself who grew up without that kind of PRIVILIDGED education have abilities of every day survival and the need to adapt to get through every day without the gift of throwing a huge salary at the outside world to get what I need.

Those with the limits of their privilidge will ironically be the slaves of those who do the things that need little or no qualifications.

I love the rich fools, for they are the ignorance that keep Jack Of All Trades happy.

That's not it. Most, not all, of the most apt people I know at "everything and anything", including myself have bachelor's degrees and higher. Now, my parents couldn't pay for my college, I worked ~60 hours a week to get through school, but many of theirs did.

The best mechanic I ever knew (he's since passed), was a highly regarded Emergency Room doctor - and I managed an auto repair shop with some really top-notch Techs.

The reason for the lack has to do with parents not encouraging or sparking the use of sense, logic, problem solving and ingenuity in their children. You're fooling yourself if you think higher education with a goal of financial benefit keeps anyone from learning a broad range of things and being a "jack of all trades." In fact, the determination to learn new things, time and resource management and the determination to see difficult tasks to completion necessary to achieve college degrees is, in my opinion, part of why the college graduates seem to also be the more willing and able to take the initiative and successfully complete and task/challenge presented to them, among people I know (and myself.)