Armed and Ready To Build!
A short while ago I was persuaded by my wife that, as a man, it should be no problem for me to build a shed in our back yard. However, not being a great DIY enthusiast and being slightly intimidated by the thought of such a major enterprise, I turned to the internet for help and advice.
The problem with the internet is that, when you search for something, you get a lot of something else with it. So, when I searched for DIY help and advice, I also got more than my fair share of DIY disasters and accidents. It was almost enough to make me give up before I started. For instance, did you know that 220,000 people need emergency treatment each year because they have fallen off a ladder.(Just as well I wasn't going to build a shed with a second story !).
Apparently, most accidents involve the use of tools and equipment and are largely due to over-ambition and a lack of understanding. Alarmingly, this seemed to sum me up pretty well.
Being a bit of a lazy guy, I had thought of buying a circular or tablesaw, then I read this : Despite improved guards and the addition of riving knives, tablesaw injuries are still alarmingly common. recent study published in the Journal of Trauma, a professional journal for ER staff, that an average of 31,400 people are treated in U.S. emergency rooms every year for tablesaw injuries. 10% of these injuries involve amputations !
An article in the Sunday Telegraph tells the unfortunate story of Stuart Keen, a 54-year-old carpenter who, accidentally sawed off his own penis while. According to his mother "Stuart is a carpenter and these things happen all the time to people in his profession." She did not explain where his appendage was at the time of the accident, but one can only assume that it wasn't tucked up out of harm's way as it should have been!
And how about this delightful tale of William Bartron from Pennsylvania,who accidentally cut off his hand while using a miter saw, in the basement of friend's home. To put an end to his suffering, he then shot himself several times in the head with a nail gun. Bartron, 25, underwent surgery to reattach the hand and remove a dozen 1-inch nails protruding from his scalp !
What I learnt from all this was that, even for the most experienced handymen, DIY work can be extremely dangerous. It is important to be alert and concentrated at all times, and, If you start to feel a little tired, take a rest, or leave things til the next day.
However, there are some people who are so detached from normal, rational behaviour, that they should never, but really, never, attempt anything as risky as DIY. One such person is Ronald Long of Missouri. With the laudable intention of installing a satellite TV in the marital bedroom, Mr Long was confronted with the problem of passing a cable through the outside wall of his house. Not being in possession of a drill, and, in an astonishing display of what a lack of common-sense can lead to, he decided to use his .22 calibre handgun to make the hole. He fired two shots into the wall, successfully making the hole, but shooting dead his poor wife, who was standing just outside !
So now, forewarned by all these tales of woe, I feel ready to begin the challenge that Mrs F has laid down for me. And, as they say, forewarned is forearmed, so she'd just better keep away from the outside wall !
The problem with the internet is that, when you search for something, you get a lot of something else with it. So, when I searched for DIY help and advice, I also got more than my fair share of DIY disasters and accidents. It was almost enough to make me give up before I started. For instance, did you know that 220,000 people need emergency treatment each year because they have fallen off a ladder.(Just as well I wasn't going to build a shed with a second story !).
Apparently, most accidents involve the use of tools and equipment and are largely due to over-ambition and a lack of understanding. Alarmingly, this seemed to sum me up pretty well.
Being a bit of a lazy guy, I had thought of buying a circular or tablesaw, then I read this : Despite improved guards and the addition of riving knives, tablesaw injuries are still alarmingly common. recent study published in the Journal of Trauma, a professional journal for ER staff, that an average of 31,400 people are treated in U.S. emergency rooms every year for tablesaw injuries. 10% of these injuries involve amputations !
An article in the Sunday Telegraph tells the unfortunate story of Stuart Keen, a 54-year-old carpenter who, accidentally sawed off his own penis while. According to his mother "Stuart is a carpenter and these things happen all the time to people in his profession." She did not explain where his appendage was at the time of the accident, but one can only assume that it wasn't tucked up out of harm's way as it should have been!
And how about this delightful tale of William Bartron from Pennsylvania,who accidentally cut off his hand while using a miter saw, in the basement of friend's home. To put an end to his suffering, he then shot himself several times in the head with a nail gun. Bartron, 25, underwent surgery to reattach the hand and remove a dozen 1-inch nails protruding from his scalp !
What I learnt from all this was that, even for the most experienced handymen, DIY work can be extremely dangerous. It is important to be alert and concentrated at all times, and, If you start to feel a little tired, take a rest, or leave things til the next day.
However, there are some people who are so detached from normal, rational behaviour, that they should never, but really, never, attempt anything as risky as DIY. One such person is Ronald Long of Missouri. With the laudable intention of installing a satellite TV in the marital bedroom, Mr Long was confronted with the problem of passing a cable through the outside wall of his house. Not being in possession of a drill, and, in an astonishing display of what a lack of common-sense can lead to, he decided to use his .22 calibre handgun to make the hole. He fired two shots into the wall, successfully making the hole, but shooting dead his poor wife, who was standing just outside !
So now, forewarned by all these tales of woe, I feel ready to begin the challenge that Mrs F has laid down for me. And, as they say, forewarned is forearmed, so she'd just better keep away from the outside wall !