Hey Jesus. Could you give me a hand renovating my shed? I sure could use some expert help.

He was a carpenter, right?

Carpenters are under appreciated as far as I’m concerned. There’s something about building things with wood. With your two hands. Physical labor.

Guys, I know you’ve all been there. You have this project in mind that you finally get to. In your mind, you expect to knock it out in a weekend. You know what happens next.  Once you actually get working it suddenly looks like it might take a month of weekends. You encounter the unexpected. You need more materials than you thought.

You make multiple trips to Lowe’s or Home Depot?  Been there, done that?

I’m in the middle of one such project right now. Sounded simple enough, even on paper. The goal was to replace the wood siding on my shed with the amazing “hardie board”.  If you’ve not used it before, this stuff is awesome. It’s a concrete type board that doesn’t rot, insects won’t eat, and it holds up for years.

My best laid plan was to start by stripping the old, rotting, insect ridden wood siding off the shed on day one. Sounded simple enough. I should have figured what would happen next.

I like to think I’m a pretty decent handy man.  I can replace sinks, a garbage disposal, a garage door opener, shingles on the roof, that kind of thing. I stay away from electrical because I’m afraid I might fry myself. (I nearly did a couple years ago replacing a hot tub motor. That’s a story for another day.)

Back to the shed.  It’s 12 foot by 8 foot on a concrete slab with a shingled roof.  I thought I could just start pulling the old siding off to make room for the hardie board. Wrong.  Of course the siding was pushed up under the soffit. I ended up having to take down the facia boards and all the soffit just to get to the siding.  Then, as my handy man luck would have it, I found more termite or insect damage than I expected. I’ll have to replace a couple of two by four studs on one corner of the shed.  Hopefully, I can do that without it falling down.

My “easy demolition day” turned into one of those long ordeals. I finally got it done, but let me tell you.  My aches have aches. That’s the old age thing that I discussed in another recent article. That turning 50 thing.  The mind is willing, but the flesh is beyond worn out.

I nearly clubbed myself in the head with my hammer (which doubled today as a crowbar), I almost put a giant splinter through my hand and I saved myself once from falling off the ladder.  All in all, I’d say a typical Steve project.

Halfway through my demolition, I made a junket to Lowe’s.  I was supposed to be checking out the price for my new materials. I found myself instead looking at the new sheds in the outdoor department.  No way.  I can’t sell out. I can do this thing.

I got some much needed extra energy on the way back from Lowe’s by wolfing down a Quarter Pounder with Cheese and fries from the drive in at the golden arches.

I was clearly on a mission now. That old shed was not about to get the better of me.  Come on, we’re all competitive and driven like that at times, right?

Just as my body was about to give out, I pulled the last piece of old siding off the stubborn shed.  Take that Mr. Shed.  Yeah, who’s the boss now?

So, I’ve nearly killed myself just getting the old siding off.  (and a lot of other pieces to boot)  I can’t wait to begin the re-construction phase.  I’ve decided to take that a little more slowly. My wife scolded me tonight for “overdoing it again”.  She’s right, of course.  But don’t tell her that, please.

Have you ever watched any of those carpentry shows on TV.  I’m talking about stuff like “This Old House” or one called the “New Yankee Workshop”. Those guys make it look so easy. And you know what? For them, it is easy.  If my garage and shed were filled with every power tool known to man, I’m sure my carpentry skills would jump several notches. At least that’s what I tell myself.  Ah, if only I had all the right tools.

Back to Jesus the carpenter.  Do you suppose he ever hit his thumb with the hammer?  And what did he say when it happened?  We’ve shared that thought in Sunday School before, and I just laugh about it. I’d like to think Jesus never hit his thumb with the hammer. Who knows?

I do know that despite my sore body (which will be more sore tomorrow) I’m happy to be doing this project. There’s something about physical labor on a project like this. Sure, it doesn’t always go the way we expect.  But when we finish, there’s true satisfaction.

Replace that shed project with many experiences in life.  We may have a grand plan for the way we expect things to go. Reality doesn’t match our plan or our expectations. We adapt, work a little harder, and roll with the punches.  It may not always turn out the way we expect (the verdict is still out on my finished shed) but just having the guts to take on the project, or take on some challenge in life, is what it’s all about.

Get in the game.  Don’t sit on the sidelines.

Jesus was a carpenter.

I’m trying to be more like Him.

- STEVE
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