A couple weeks ago I received an email that had me rolling. It was called, "There. I Fixed It!" and was a bunch of pictures of things people had rigged to get working properly. (Well, sort of.) Included was an air conditioning unit in the passenger side window of a car, power by a generator which was duct taped to the trunk of the car. I was laughing hard because although it looks hilarious, I find the creativity of people who have a knack for "making it work" fascinating. I'm a "make it work" kind of guy myself, so I'm always impressed when people don't just hammer a nail in the wall, but instead, shoe a nail in the wall, or thumbnail one in the wall.
My sister and I refer to this specific set of skills as the "make do gene." It's the gene that's typically present in people who by nature, are laid back. It's a great gene to have if you find yourself having lunch with the kiddies at Cedar Point and you realize you forgot to pack napkins. In which case, empty cheese slice wrappers work beautifully. (My sister is a miracle worker.) Funny thing is; her kids never batted an eye when she offered them each one. Just took them from her and started wiping their 8, 9, and 12 year old faces with them.
Anyway, I decided to post a couple of our own "make do gene" miracles around here. Evalee doesn't seem to have the "make do gene." It's a work in progress with her. Just gimme some time. However, Chloe is fully embracing it, as you can see below.
My sister and I refer to this specific set of skills as the "make do gene." It's the gene that's typically present in people who by nature, are laid back. It's a great gene to have if you find yourself having lunch with the kiddies at Cedar Point and you realize you forgot to pack napkins. In which case, empty cheese slice wrappers work beautifully. (My sister is a miracle worker.) Funny thing is; her kids never batted an eye when she offered them each one. Just took them from her and started wiping their 8, 9, and 12 year old faces with them.
Anyway, I decided to post a couple of our own "make do gene" miracles around here. Evalee doesn't seem to have the "make do gene." It's a work in progress with her. Just gimme some time. However, Chloe is fully embracing it, as you can see below.
I went out to clean up the Slip-n-slide and apparently she couldn't find the plastic stakes that come with it to hold it into the ground, so... she improvised. Love it. Makes me proud.
She gets this from me.
This following is our front porch chair which is obviously torn through. What's a person to do? I found an old piece of ply wood and There. I fixed it. Had to cut it with a hack saw. Total pain, but the result is sheer perfection. Just add a chair cushion and cop a squat!
But this is my fav by a long shot. Heather took this pic cause she was amazed at the "make do gene" in full swing. (I'm choosing to believe that.) I was talking on the phone to my sister while trying to do dishes and it just wasn't working. So while on the phone, I came up with this little baby. And actually, it was pretty comfortable AND I got the dishes done while chit chatting.
I have to brag on Heather... while she is not a "make do gene" person, I got a phone call from her last winter that surprised me. She was going to go for a walk on a cold winter's morning and couldn't find the dog's leash. Normally, she might have just decided not to go, at at least not to take the dog. But instead, I got a phone call while at work and I could tell she was walking. She told me that she couldn't find Mimi's leash but that she decided to push through it. "So what did you do?" I asked. "Oh, I just used one of the girl's belts," she said. And I was impressed and proud. I only wish I had a picture of that!
