Why I am not learning how to handle heavy tools
Never before have I hung a lamp myself in my own home. I have never used a drill to put screws in a wall or hang a blind from a window. I have driven concrete nails into a wall with a hammer. But that’s maybe not something to be that proud of. I'm 37 now and I've never even had the thought of learning how to handle heavy tools. Mainly because my father has always been there to do that for me and so I’ve never had the need. I do sometimes think: is this something I SHOULD be able to do myself?
In the years I've lived on my own, and there are many by now, I've never tried to hang things up myself. When I moved into a new place my parents would come over for coffee and my father would bring his toolbox. Over the years he would make sure my curtains, lamps, mirrors, picture frames, shelves, coat racks were all hung in the spot I had pointed to. Even applying window film is something my mother and I did together. She's just really good at it, in my opinion.
Even more self-reliant
I would probably proudly announce what talents I have if I could have handled heavy tools. I think of women handling these kinds of house chores themselves as pretty cool. Teaching myself to use a drill would make me even more self-reliant in that regard. Though I am all about being independent and cool, it’s not enough to motivate me to start learning how to use these specific tools. I am also not convinced of my own abilities and right now have no desire to put them to the test. And then there is the fact that I don't feel like spending time learning something I really don’t have any interest for.
Sometimes you need people
When you’re single you already have to think about and do everything by yourself. So it’s always good to have people around who are good at things you know nothing about. You ask for help. When you're single it's nice to have help in certain areas. You already have enough in your live you have to make a decision about. I realize I am choosing the easy way in this. My dad is there, fortunately, and happy to help me. And so it’s an aspect of being single that I don't have to think about. As a result, there is no need to develop my (im)possibly hidden talents.
Independence in other areas
So I have resigned myself to the fact that for now I am un-self-reliant and dependent in regards to using tools. As long as I am independent in other areas of my life I am okay with it. And in this case I only have to consider what wall in my living room the mirror should go on and where the shelves would look best. That's actually really nice.
