Thursday 2 December 2021

Workshop blues...

     

apocalypse workshop


     I guess I must now have one of the untidiest 'workshops' known to man (I used to write "mankind" but age has taught me that as a race there is not an abundance of kindness within it), which is quite bemusing for me. As an engineer I was extremely methodical and ruthlessly tidy in my work habits and to have my workshop in its present state is extremely frustrating for me.

      I could give you many excuses as to why it is in this chaotic mess such as : I have no time, I cannot throw it  away as it may be useful one day (after my expiry date!), I am far too busy working to earn a crust, there is always something more pressing to do etc, etc, etc.... the list goes on but you get the general idea. 

     Well at the moment, because of 'the snap' I certainly have time but unfortunately not the capacity to work, bugger! But being unable to work has given myself the time to re-evaluate various aspects of my present life including how I earn a crust. Part of the original plan, when I became self employed, was use the growing seasons to push the gardening side of my business and then, as this work tailed off in the winter months use the workshop to service and repair garden related machinery. But, as with most great plans, things did not work out as I had thought they would. Over the last few years I have taken on only a small amount of machinery maintenance as I have had a reasonably steady flow of mainly landscaping work throughout the darker months, from patio laying, garden wall building, ditch clearing, garden clearing, some house decorating, concreting shed bases, shed erection and other such tasks and as a result the workshop has fallen more and more into the sorry state at which we now find it.

     But now, after this time spent re-assessing my work and also after realising that my body does not bounce anymore (surprising when you consider how rotund I am), I realise that the heavier work must slowly taper off and work of a slightly less physically demanding nature must come more to the fore. With this in mind I have been planning for when my clavicle bone is un-snapped  and I can once again become pro-active physically as well mentally. So the plan for the workshop, as it stands, is as follows:- 

1. Ruthlessly clear the workshop by either selling, giving away or dumping absolutely anything that is not required (if it's not used it goes). 

2. Install workbenches with implemented storage.  

3. Divide workshop into two distinct areas, machinery area and a larger project area.

4. Ensure adequate lighting and power outlets, 12v and 240v, replacing fuses with trip switches.

5, Re-lay and seal concrete floor as the old one is just breaking up and the dust finds its way into every nook and cranny.

      So that is the basic plan to establish my workshop as a going concern that will contribute income to the business. As well as machinery maintenance I am also planning other projects but there will be about these as and when they develop.  But in essence my long unused engineering skills will hopefully start to come more to the fore and the heavier landscaping work diminish a tad, well a lot. 

     Oh and one final thing whilst I am here, this workshop side of the business cannot be expected to take off under a gardening banner so I have come up with a title for it to set it apart and that is 'The Orc's Workshop', catchy is it not?



17 comments:

  1. Oh dear, that is in a state. However, your list sounds great and I look forward to the exploits of this side of your business. You are also correct in getting rid of heavy jobs, it just becomes harder.

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    1. Oh dear indeed Dc, tis a right bloody mess is it not? Actually swallowed a tad of my man pride to admit to having to ease off in the future.

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  2. John, I think one of the big challenges (for me, anyway) is the concept of just "getting rid of things". I do not know if you have them in your neck of the woods, but here there are neighborhood "Buy nothing" groups, where one posts items to give away to interested parties. It is amazing how quickly things go.

    And yes - working to the point of not lifting heavy things is a pretty good idea. We do not bounce back nearly as fast.

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    1. I agree TB, the concept of "just getting rid of things" is such a hard thing to accept and to set into motion, though for me the time has come to bite the bullet, albeit grudgingly. The 'grand clear-out' as it will become known in man cave history will be achieved via a combination of the dreaded flea-bay, local buy & sell groups for the cheaper items, charity shops for anything that's useful but has not sold and the rest to the local refuse centre.

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  3. It's always good to have a plan.

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    1. Indeed it is Jules, though sticking to one is quite often my downfall

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  4. Definitely a bit of a muddle!
    Good luck.....one thing at a time and you will get there

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    1. Thank you Sue, small bites to move the mountain m'thinks

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  5. When we moved, sorting out my husband's workshop(s)/storage was one of the biggest tasks. He doesn't get rid of anything which might be remotely useful! No end of metal went to the Tip - where are the scrap men when you need them? We still bought an awful lot of useful bits of wood, but had a huge bonfire with an even bigger amount. Sadly, now he's more or less sorted in his new workshop, his health has gone downhill. I think we will be needing yet another sort out. Good luck with yours and I don't blame you for giving up the heavy duty work.

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    1. Hi BB, thank you for the comment and I am sorry to hear that your husband's health my force another clear-out m'dear.

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  6. Looks like my garage. Orderly chaos.

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    1. I am afraid there is no organisation to my workshop's chaos my friend! One day?

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  7. I truly think you have the right plan there John. Heavy work is just a step too far as we age. It will take you until spring to clear your workshop by the look of it! Little and often is the key. Don't kill yourself trying to do it in a few days. You never know, you might raise a bit of money too. Good luck John.

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    1. Thank you PP, the aim is to have it cleared and a functioning workshop by early summer next year, as after this the garden will be taking all my spare time. Slow and steady wins the race but I cannot afford to dawdle as hopefully the workshop will be contributing to my dismal funds by the end of Autumn and the garden will become a restful place for G and myself and a haven for wildlife.

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  8. Very catchy! I wish you the best of luck in getting your workshop the way you want it.

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    1. Thank you for dropping buy Belinda and for the kind words m'dear.

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  9. Thank you for the kind words Ratana

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