"Me And My Boy Joe Can Do It"

My dad's father had a workbench set up in the back corner of his basement; I remember going down the creaky wooden stairs with him as a little kid to keep him company while he puttered around with it.  He would give me a piece of wood, some nails and a hammer, and I would amuse myself with those while he was doing whatever he was doing.

Despite having all the tools and equipment (and apparently the desire as well), Grandpa was just not good at fixing things.  Dad is the youngest of his three kids, and profoundly not-handy as well.  When Grandpa would tell Nana that the two of them were going to tackle some job together (the title phrase was how he usually put it), Nana would immediately run for the Yellow Pages and call a professional in to keep the house from being flooded or one or both of them from electrocuting themselves.  A lesson she had learned the hard way!

Now, by comparison, my mother is pretty good with basic home repair and maintenance, and she's taught me a fair bit.  She and I are the primary toolbox-users in my house (Himself is handy enough when he is home and puts his mind to it, but that just isn't how he enjoys spending his free time.)  And for what the two of us can't do between us, I have both a handyman and a contractor on speed dial.  Mom and I are a much safer bet together than Dad and Grandpa ever were, though!