Looking up and down the aisles at Lowes and not finding a raised garden bed that met my needs, I inquired with a staff member:
“Sorry, we don’t carry anything like that.”
“Darn. Ok, I’ll try another store then,” I sighed with resignation.
“You know,” he said to me, “it’s just wood.”
It took me a moment to realize how liberating this statement was. To him, woodworking held no mystery at all - it was just a thing you did. If he wanted a garden bed, there’d be no question in his mind that he’d make it himself. Why spend more on something suboptimal when you can build exactly what you want?
At least half of what I have learned has been because I was dissatisfied with what was available and thought I could do better myself.
Sometimes I could make a better thing, and sometimes I couldn't, but I always learned something. Even sometimes just the knowledge that it's harder than it looks.
——
Looking up and down the aisles at Lowes and not finding a raised garden bed that met my needs, I inquired with a staff member:
“Sorry, we don’t carry anything like that.”
“Darn. Ok, I’ll try another store then,” I sighed with resignation.
“You know,” he said to me, “it’s just wood.”
It took me a moment to realize how liberating this statement was. To him, woodworking held no mystery at all - it was just a thing you did. If he wanted a garden bed, there’d be no question in his mind that he’d make it himself. Why spend more on something suboptimal when you can build exactly what you want?
— Bryan Kennedy (http://plusbryan.com/its-just-wood)