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It’s the job of every man to be the head of the household.  That may seem and sound chauvinistic, and perhaps it is.  I’m a man, how would I know the difference.  Still, a head cannot operate without the body and limbs, the vital organs, the blood, the spinal column…  In my family, I place myself as the head.  My wife often reminds me that the head is not all inclusive and she reserves the right to hold the status of the Brain, and as she is most often inside my head I have granted her that.  As for the rest of my family, they all have parts.  From my kids who give my heart a reason to pump and blood to flow…as I chase their skinny little asses all over the yard for some trouble or other, to my little brother to whom belongs my toe.  It has a broken and black nail and is bent at a funny angle.

Of course, every family has its crises, turmoil, skeletons and woes.  Fear not, there are some redeeming qualities to families.   I once found an old pair of pliers buried under some dirt just beneath a bush in our backyard.  It was rough and didn’t open and close.  I let it soak in gasoline for a day and then washed and dried it.  I took some sandpaper and finer grinding tool implements and got most of the crud off.  I then lightly oiled it and got it to work.  It wasn’t too pretty, but functional.  That’s how families are, you’ve got a lot of built up crud and if you clean it off a little, it still can work for you.  On a side note, the pliers I found were Craftsman so I took it to Sears who allowed me to use their lifetime warranty and get a brand new one.  Life lesson, if you don’t like your own family, just adopt another one. J

Issue:  Getting Married

Solution:  Pipe clamps are a good idea when gluing up two pieces of wood together.  It’s important that you plane each piece of wood so it’s smooth and level, that way the glue can adhere evenly across the surface.  You may also want to use a biscuit cutter to cut holes in each side of the wood so that when they are glued with a biscuit inserted into the holes they will join together even stronger.  Finally, to help them glue up, use pipe type holding clamps until the pieces are settled and dried.  You can then remove the clamps thereby freeing the wood which now functions solidly, unencumbered and barely visible that they were once separated.

(Woman Speak:  Before getting married, make sure you have something that bonds you together.  Similar interest, likes, goals.  These when exposed and shared create an even stronger bond.  You must make some compromises to ensure a smooth transition into couplehood.  He may need to start throwing his dirty socks into the hamper, and she may need to ignore the fact that he doesn’t.  Once married, there will be some trouble spots which may cause your faith to slip a little, it’s important to maintain the sanctity of marriage and hold on tight through the rough spots.  Eventually, you won’t need to hold on so tight and you can delight in your freedoms as a couple.)

Issue:  Having Children

Solution:  When facing a large project, it’s good to have some blueprints drawn up to help define clear directions and materials needed to perform the task.  The devil is in the details.  Remember, patience will get you through the rough stages of building, perseverance will see it through to its completion.  You may find that part way through your project you may need to make some changes to the drawing to allow for a window or a door, or perhaps even a redesign of the interior.  Eventually, the final product will be something worth showing off and you can tell your friend that you made that.

(Woman Speak:  Not all children are planned, that doesn’t mean that they aren’t wanted.  What can be planned is how you will raise and educate your children.  Bonding starts at an early age and requires consistent rules and guidance mixed with a healthy amount of love and caring.  As your child grows and becomes their own person, your own hopes and dreams for them may change.  Still, if you instill your values and beliefs upon them, they will recall those as they get older and become the responsible adults you hoped).

Walking around my workshop I have neatly organized my wood working tools, power tools, metal working tools and my special equipment for working with electronics.  It took me years to learn and master all of them, and while some of them have been gathering dust for a while, I can still bring it out, dust it off and use the tool like I used it every day.  The key is knowing where to find our tools, organizing them in a way that you can access them easily and ensuring you know your tools well.

(Normal Person Speak:  Diversify your talent.  College often prepares young people to learn things specific to their career path, but also to learn things outside their comfort zone.   Real life gives you opportunities to get outside your comfort zone and learn new things.  You may need to take some classes or just get involved in activities you always wanted to try.  If you find yourself unemployed, these experiences and abilities make you marketable to far more employers.  Remember, just because you're unemployed doesn't mean you're unemployable.
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