There is a small, faint stain on the family room ceiling. It looks almost as if a mouse peed there. I say this as someone who has seen more than her fair share of mouse pee. If only that unsightly stain were the urine of a ceiling-walking rodent. That would be preferable to what it actually is, which is … Continue reading Where the Rubber Meets the Roof

Tattoos are big in construction school. On any given day, you can see the glossy sheen of antibacterial ointment on someone's recently updated or aggravated skin art. Weapons, ammo and the insignia of veterans' organizations figure prominently upon classroom biceps. Bible verses, too. (It must take a certain dogged faith to endure the inking of … Continue reading Mother’s Day: In the Flesh

There's a gentleman in my construction class who exceeds the general class skill level on every possible metric. He makes exquisite furniture using scrap wood. He makes baby toys, cribs and scooters between other carpentry assignments. He is a craftsman, an artist and a hard worker. He can drive a 16d nail into a 2x4 … Continue reading Talk Is Cheap, But Also Priceless

A few weeks back, I celebrated the made-up holiday Pat Hickman Day by posting a story about the gentleman who built my house and planted the glorious saucer magnolia in our front yard some 80 years ago. My favorite tree-hugging friend, Vicki Turner, read the story and submitted it to the Nashville Tree Foundation's Big … Continue reading Big Ole Tree

The new trimester at construction school opened with a screening of snuff films--decapitations, electrocutions, dismemberments and impalings--all in the name of putting safety first on the job site. OSHA is a dark mistress. After so many clips of arc-flash burns that left me covering my eyes in terror, a YouTube video from Dirty Jobs host … Continue reading Safety is Sexy

My brother-in-law Scott died unexpectedly this week. He's the husband of my sister Polly, who started construction class with me in the fall. We are all devastated. Scott loved the idea of Polly's learning construction. Building and fixing things came easily to him. Sitting around the house telling stories these last few days, someone remembered … Continue reading Scott Nieboer Built an Extraordinary Life

In carpentry--unlike other disciplines, such as the study of language or business training, for example--filling out one's toolbox is not just a metaphor. Since enrolling in construction school in September, I have acquired a motley selection of tools, including a Ryobi palm sander, Husky utility knife, and my beloved DeWalt jigsaw. At the top of … Continue reading I Chalk the Line

(UPDATE: Earth Day was canceled due to rain. I feel a sad haiku coming on...) Tomorrow is Earth Day, which means a festival of environment- and family-friendly activities at Centennial Park in Nashville. Starting at 11 a.m., there will be live music, a green market of local products, Goodwill clothing and book drop-off, pharmaceutical disposal, and craft … Continue reading A Haiku for Earth Day

Maybe it's because I have been a food writer for so much of my life, but information tends to stick with me better when it's framed in culinary terms. At construction school, sandwiches are a frequent trope. For example, we informally refer to door and window headers as "OSB sandwiches," that is, a couple slabs of two-by lumber with a … Continue reading More Sandwiches than a Which Wich