My Goal

When I was growing up, our schools offered classes in both wood shop and automotive repair. I learned more in those classes from a common-sense standpoint than from the rest of my curriculum combined. Today, it seems video games and computers have become the new workshop and fewer of us are working — really working — with our hands. That scares me a lot.

My auto shop teacher, Mr. Frank Draves, constantly reminded students, “When you eat, you eat. When you sleep, you sleep. When you study, you study.” His point was, live in the moment and focus fully on the task at hand. That’s where inspiration lives. That’s how creativity is nurtured.

I hope you’ve had the chance to tackle one or more of the projects on these pages. Hopefully, you discovered a way to improve your home and learned some new tricks along the way. If you found a new way to save energy or fix an expensive leak, you’ve made this book worth writing. Maybe you learned how to use a new tool or discovered a new way to use an old one; that means my goal has been met.

It was my intent for this book to be anything but just another home improvement guide. I wrote it to be more of an owner’s manual for your home — the book you reach for when something breaks. I’d love for you to be inspired, even in some small way, to think outside the box. Don’t simply throw away something when it gets broken; learn how to fix it.

Thanks for taking the time to read these words. Think about them. Pass the skills you learned to your children. Teach them to be self-reliant. It just may be the best gift you ever give them.