Projects a-plenty!

As many of my good friends know, I don’t do well “sitting” and doing nothing. I always need to have a project to work on or something to do.

I have been told that this is a flaw in my personality. That not being content sitting still shows that I am not happy in my current situation. I see it completely different.  I can’t help that I enjoy exercising my mind and my creativity. If Mr. Tom Edison was told that he was too ‘A.D.D.’ and should stop trying to do so much, we may be riding to work in a carriage while writing to a friend with pencil and paper by candle light.  Now I’m not saying that I am inventing anything, although I have made attempts at several patents (they never seem to turn out.) But I do think that excess time and the desire to ALWAYS try to make something before I have to buy it, result in semi-productive hours that sometime turn out decent products.

I think I learned this through my parents: My mom taught me to enjoy the art of cooking and my dad has instilled in me the ability to fabricate nearly anything due to extreme thriftiness. Growing up, I wore shirts, coats and hats made by mom’s sewing machine, ate dinners she made for us every single night while living in a house built solely by my dad’s hands. Many times, my dad has said that one of the greatest things he learned from his dad was how to be a good carpenter and that he wants to pass that knowledge to me. If my dad is reading this, I would like him to know that I don’t take that for granted and while I may not ever build an entire house with what he has taught me, I do put those skills to work as often as possible.

Over the past week or two, I have been working on a several projects that I thought I would share, in top 5 format:

5. Buckeyes:  These are probably my favorite candies of all times, and something I have made with my mom nearly everything Thanksgiving as long as I can remember.  While they are not ingredient heavy, they take some skill to make…and after whipping up over ten dozen of these in the past two weeks due to high demand in the office, I can say that I have it down pat. I don’t care what anyone says; only the manliest of men know how to temper chocolate the right way.

4. Man Cave: Speaking of being a man, I’m pretty sure the desire of every man is to have his “man cave”. I have been working on mine ever since we got our house. This past week my cave has taken a huge step with the addition of an 82” home theater experience, thanks to a woot.com purchase of a 1080p HD projector. Now, I could’ve gone out and bought a screen, and had someone install it…but where’s the fun in that?!  No, I have spent the better part of the last 4 evenings constructing the custom screen(s) (side note: about two hours after completing the first screen, my adorable son had knocked it off the wall complete with a large tear directly in the middle. oops). Then cut holes in the ceiling and walls to run the cables and electrical outlets in an effort to make my man cave my own.  With some finishing touches tonight, I should be ready to re watch the Star Wars Trilogy(s) in an entirely new, all encompassing environment. For only the low low price of $80/hr, I will come to your house and do it as well!

Check out the video

3. The Treadbike: I probably won’t win any races while training on this one, but at least it was a fun toy to build…where no one got hurt, and the treadmill has only a scratch or two.  And for you critics; yes, I know – there is no resistance, but that does not make it any less awesome.

2. Beard Growing: while this neither takes practice nor real skill, the meaning behind it certainly warrants a slot on the top 5.  Every year for the past 5 years, my fellow co-workers and I have endured the “hairy holidays”, a project not for the weary.  In Q4, you don’t shave until you hit your quota.   Most times this little undertaking is no less than 2months and 3 weeks in the making…Luckily this year I had a good run and Abby got to enjoy the reward of my holiday mustache a little earlier this season.  Cheers!

1. Becker Annual Dinner:  You have to start traditions somewhere, so this year my wife and I decided to start the ‘Becker Annual Dinner’.  It’s something that my parents have done for 20+ years, and not once have I been invited.  So this year, we invited a dozen of our friends for an all out 5 course meal complete with wine pairings.  This has served as an outlet for me to cook and do wine tastings, and for my wife to decorate and make our house look gorgeous.   Perhaps for my next post I will reveal the recipes I have been working on for this feast!

So after this weekend is over, I’m sure I will be on the hunt for the next over-the-top project that I can tackle, and one that doesn’t cause too much destruction to the house. I am always looking for suggestions, so feed them my way!