John Greenwood

Making Stuff

WRITTEN AND PHOTOGRAPHED BY JOHN R. GREENWOOD

The last couple of months have been challenging for everyone. It’s an ideal time to express my gratitude and admiration for those on the front lines of the war on COVID-19. I’m fortunate to be retired and have little to complain about in comparison. My priority is in the next room, safe and sound. Although spurts of fear and uncertainty have caused some tears and a few nightmares, my wife and I are trying to remain positive and productive. In that light, I’ve begun making stuff. This week I made some stuff so I could make more stuff. Our garage is only large enough for a Toyota, a motorcycle, a bicycle, and a vast assortment of yard tools. A cellar is not the

ideal place to build stuff. I’m much happier building stuff out in the fresh air. The view is better, and a leaf-blower will make sawdust magically disappear. For the last forty years, my building projects have been squeezed in between work and other responsibilities. Now that I have more time to spend on projects, my impatience is more manageable, and the quality of my circular saw cuts are vastly improved. I started by building a worktable. I added casters for mobility. I didn’t use any specific set of plans, although I did watch hours and hours of workbench building videos on YouTube. I’m not sure if that made the end result any better, but it did kill a lot of time.

It’s also been scientifically proven that watching DIY videos on YouTube makes your morning coffee taste better. The worktable came out better than expected. It also used up a pile of scrap material that I’d collected from last year’s projects. The casters were a necessity because the table weighs more than a Buick. When the weather warms up, I’ll add some stain.

The second project was building a new set of sawhorses. I dug out an old set of plans I’d used before. I would still be using the original ones if I’d maintained them better. This time I used pressure treated lumber and exterior-grade fasteners. This pair should outlast me. I’m planning to repaint the garage this summer. These beasts are strong enough to be used for scaffolding. These three items will help make my other building projects more enjoyable this summer. Having portable work surfaces makes any DIY project go smoother. It also gives you more work area and makes clean-up less of a chore. If we are going to be yard-bound this spring, we might as well be building, cleaning, or improving something while we’re at it.

For all of you who still have to drive a truck, tend to the ill or injured, keep retail afloat, or protect us from fire and crime, I can’t thank you enough. To stay engaged, I will try to write and build more often. I will do my best to keep the stories light and the projects simple. We experience enough drama with the morning news to last all day. The best advice I can give right now is to keep moving. Building stuff is a pretty good place to start. Don’t forget to wear your safety glasses, earplugs, face mask, sunscreen, gloves, steel toes boots, and hard hat. Be sure to hydrate, wash your hands, slather sanitizer, eat all your vegetables, take your vitamins, and drink your juice. Get enough sleep. Warm-up and stretch before any strenuous activity. Keep smiling and have fun.