By John Carlin
WSLS10 Anchor
Published: April 1, 2008

Three months from now the sun will be beating down and the lawn will be brown.  Walking to the curb to get the newspaper will seem like a chore in the humidity.  Working in the yard then will be about as appealing as drinking swamp water.

That’s not the case now.  It’s spring.  The grass is greening up, the mulch needs refreshing, and the blah of winter is behind us.  At no other time can so little effort do so much to improve the looks of your home and cure cabin fever.  It’s where a little bit of muscle meets instant gratification.

Alas, the weather did not cooperate on Sunday, so my energy had to be diverted.  I still went to the hardware store, but instead of buying rock to build my mini-retaining wall around the lamp post, it was 2 x 4’s to build a largish aquarium stand.

I recruited 15-year-old son, Tyler to help.  He was not too enthused, but out of desperation, I agreed to pay him, if he would just pay attention and hold the end of the board while I sawed it off.

So while it rained outside, we measured, sawed and drilled inside.  After a few cuts, Ty said, “I want to try this one.” “You mean with the saw?” I said.  Then to clarify, “This saw with the rotating blade; on this board which must be perfectly square; you want to do this?” He rolled his eyes. “Yes.”

My first instinct is that cutting along the line is much too important and urgent for any teenager to attempt.  Then it occurred to me that he would be driving my car in less than a year.  The 2 x 4 cost $2.47.  If I am prepared to let him drive the car, (which I’m still not) I guess I should trust him with a battery operated power tool and a piece of wood.  “Ok,” I said.

Remarkably, he did not sever any fingers and the saw moved smoothly along the line.  Again and again he did it.  Suddenly I was the one holding the end of the board.

Once cut, we began to assemble the pieces.  Using a Phillips head drill bit the plan was to drive the screws and make quick work of the project.  On the first one I split the wood.  Ditto the second.  “If you go through from the other side, that won’t happen,” said my young assistant.  “Uh, I know,” I grumbled under my breath.  In fact it had never occured to me.

“We can set it up like this,” Ty said.  “And everything will be in place,” he continued, improving even more on his suggestion, as he propped the boards together forming the ultimate shape of the stand.  He was right.  It was faster and made it easier to see the ultimate goal.  “By the way you didn’t cut enough of the 9-inch pieces,” he said.  “We need two more.” Right again. 

Once the final pieces were cut – we took turns holding the wood and driving the screws with the cordless drill. 

When we were done, we had a sturdy stand that was perfectly square and level.  No yard work yet, but serious satisfaction, from a place I didn’t expect it

Soon the tanks on the stand will be teeming with fish.  But I may not be around to see them for a while, because the sun is going to be out soon.  The yard still beckons.

Now, I wonder how Tyler feels about stacking rocks around the lamp post.