AmyH wrote:I am currently building my own tear, welding the chassis and all!! The guys on the board are incredibly supportive, and with their knowledge and advice I know I will do a great job. Since there isn't a guy in my life, I tend to do everything on my own, from remodeling my house to building furniture, etc... I was a sculpture major in undergrad school, and I have built up quite an arsenal of tools over the past ten years. Now I am busy trying to organize the shop, so I can get back to building the tear. I am aiming to get it completed by early summer, so I really have to get going on it soon! As soon as I get started again I will start posting photos.
Amy
Amy, I think you really said a lot right here. YOU GO, GIRL!
But here's the deal and you tell me if I'm right or wrong and I'll use my own wife as an example.
When we first met, she was somewhat amused at the projects that I would tie into. To her, they would seem insurmountable. For example, our first place that we rented when we got married, had a terribly ugly fireplace in the main room that rendered one wall virtually useless. I asked the landlord of I could build bookcases on either side and put a mantle over the thing and that would make it all useable. The landlord said sure. But my wife didn't/couldn't really see what I was talking about. For some reason, she's always had a problem seeing potential and I couldn't seem to get my ideas across to her. But, at the time, I was working for a local contractor doing trim and hardwood floors. With the contractor's permission, I rounded up the materials from the dumpster on our jobsite and had the whole thing done in one saturday afternoon. I even extended the bookcases all the way to the ceiling and wrapped the room with crown mold. It looked fabulous after a coat of paint. Both the landlord and my wife were really impressed.
In the years since, she's come to realize that just because she doesn't think something could be done doesn't mean that I can't do it. I really believe that many girls, during their upbringings, are never exposed to these types of ideas and as a result, taking on projects such as a teardrop, are totally foreign. I blame her parents for that. I think that's a real shame. She has 2 brothers who worked on all kinds of projects as kids but she was never encouraged to get involved. But her folks seperated the boys from the girls and never encouraged her in the way that they encouraged her brothers.
Even now, my wife loves to come out and hold things for me or hand me tools, but she doesn't really ever actually do any of the work and I really think that it's a lack of belief in her abilities that holds her back. But I know that she could do it if she just tried.
You, on the other hand, have had enough exposure to these creative ideas that the mental trigger clicked at the right time and you went for it. I'm sure that the sculpturing had a LOT to do with it. I'm proud for you.
Many men feel threatened by this type of feminine self reliance. This is one of the problems. A lot of men, not all by any stretch of the imagination, become very territorial when they see women doing well at traditionally male fields of endeavor. You should rent the old movie: "Heart Like a Wheel." It's the true story of Shirley Muldowney's rise to stardrom in the world of top fuel drag racing. It's a good flic.
I will say this, though. My wife is SUPER supportive. She's excited as she can be about the prospect of using the teardrop and she brags it up EVERWHERE. I LOVE her. She's GREAT!
I am NOT a complete idiot! Some of the pieces are missing.
by Laredo » Mon Jan 31, 2005 11:33 am 
