'Don't do-it-yourself generation' can't even change a light bulb.' Article here.http://www.confused.com/press/releases/dont-do-it-yourself-generation-cant-even-change-a-lightbulb I have not met anyone unable to do the above but I have certainly come across people who could not change a plug. I have noticed that with my quite limited PC modding experience I tend to look at minor problems elsewhere as a opportunity rather than a excuse to chuck out and buy new. Small example bought a new watch recently and the retaining loop for the excess strap was to big, a thimble, decent thread and a needle soon sorted that out and rather neatly I might add. Going to the other extreme how many of these are you competent in doing? http://www.marcandangel.com/2008/06/02/50-things-everyone-should-know-how-to-do/
Pfffft number 10 changing a tyre is just changing a wheel, which should ,IMHO, be part of a driving test.
#14, #26, #34, #35. These are the ones I would struggle with. Here's my excuses; #14; it takes me a couple interactions to be sure of names, mainly because people are rubbish at introductions these days. #26; I am rubbish at languages. #34;I'm the one taking the pics thankyou! #35; Yeah, more often than not, I come away thinking why the hell did I say that you dork?!
A friend of mine is unable to do anything DIY. He has called me to help change a flat, drill a hole in concrete and managed to cut himself changing a lamp. I kid you not..... they do exist. He also has the largest collection of never used tools I have ever seen. He buys it all with the best of intentions but is clueless on how to complete a task. His last project was running 5 meters or armoured cable and terminating it for his shed electrics. It took 4 weeks and I had to re-run and terminate it before I could test it.....
#5, #10, #18, #21, #50 are all car things, as I never bothered to learn driving at all I can't do any of them. #14, People and locations apparently have names and I remember exactly none of them. #34, No dice, I absolutely despise being in photos, the only way to get me to smile in a photo would be to have one person hand me a large sum of cash and another person hidden in the bushes taking the photo.
Hum, this may have a bit to do with the "Generation Rent" in the article. My lightbulbs are my problem, but anything that came with the house is the landlords (at least here in Germany) Could I change the lightbulb in the staircase? Yes. Will I? No, that's what I pay the landlord for. Could I change the rubber in the leaking tab? Yes. Will I? No, if that doesn't fix it and I've tinkered with it, they'll charge me. So no. That said, I don't rent anymore and do next to everything myself, as I'm paying for it anyway.
Piffle, I rent, I do all the little jobs myself from changing lightbulbs to having the U-bends off and fixing fencing etc. It costs next to nothing to do and keeps the landlord happy, happy landlord = lower chance of rent increases + greater chance of getting bigger stuff done when needed sooner
In our case, "the Landlord" were usually large housing corporations, mostly municipal. They have their own caretakers or janitors and generally don't like you tinkering with "their" stuff that you merely rent. For instance, I had a fence door that didn't fit anymore. A mere case of filing off a mm or so. If I do it, I damage their property, if the caretaker does it, it's "fixing".
In the UK landlords are very rarely professional in their management of properties, the roof is leaking? Quicker to learn how to fix the roof rather than ask the Landlord to do it.
When I lived in rented accommodation I was the same. But it's mostly as I didn't like the idea of my landlord sending contractors round with keys in the middle of the day when no one was in to fix stuff. Maybe a bit paranoid, maybe not, I don't like people being given run of my house though while I'm not about. In the 4 years I lived in my old house, I think the only time we had someone over was when the water pressure dropped which was due to a fault in the main stopcock, which I wouldn't have been able to fix. Everything else I did myself, ranging from changing the cistern on the toilet, to re-decorating rooms and doing new coving. Whenever I had to buy stuff I also got the money back from my agency - before and after pictures with a receipt never failed. I find some peoples stance on what they are willing to do in the house they live in a bit strange - I get it, it's the landlords responsibility etc, which is maybe true - but they aren't living in the house! The only person that has to put up with whatever the problem is is the person living in the house. I'm pretty into DIY and the likes though so I've never really been phased or put off by the jobs. All that being said - my old housemates were fortunate in that regard as they wouldn't have been able to undertake any of the jobs as they didn't/don't have any tools or know how!
Of that 50 item list, there are only a few that I would struggle with. I'm very technical; I have a lot of experience with all things electronic, mechanical, electrical and otherwise, so none of the technical tasks on that list would challenge me at all. The public speaking, ending a date without making promises and the fine line between too much and too little flirtation are the sort of things I would struggle with more than anything technical. The rest of them are pretty basic mature adult tasks. I only know a little French because I studied it for a few years in school. I can pick up bits and pieces of Spanish conversation but don't remember enough of it to string together sentences. One pretty unique talent I have is picking up accents. I can almost always tell which country someone is from within a few seconds of speaking to them. People who are "technophobes" really irritate me at times. Mum and Dad are in their 50's and 60's respectively and both can use computers, smartphones and tablets very competently. This whole "I don't understand it and I'm too lazy/scared to learn so I never will" crap is nonsense. I know a guy my age (26) who literally cannot set a digital alarm clock or more importantly, a heating time clock. I have to do everything for him. The only electronic items he can operate are an ATM, his TV and sky box, his iPhone 5 (just about) and the radio in his car. Everything else completely stumps him, and he's too stubborn to learn.
I'm a bit lazy at reading things, but generally I've seemed to notice that lack of commong knowledge is somehow fashionale nowadays. I absolutely loathe that. Women giggle at how "oh but I know nothing about that" while they shout feminism and equality. IMO there really ARE things everyone should know how to do and for the ****s sake atleat try or to find ouf it you're absolutely blown away by simple household problems.
You mean in a "RTFM" kind of way? Thinking of that, everything comes with instructions and saferty-hazard markings these days, but not lightbulbs, hmmmm
It has a lot to do with upbringing IMO, so it's as much the previous generations fault as it is ours. I'm quite lucky in that my old man is super diy (as was his dad, who was a master carpenter) and as the first born son, I got dragged into nearly all of the projects (additions, renovations, roofing, decks, sheds - to name a few).
This. I learnt pretty much all I know from my Father and Grandfather. That sort of upbringing also gave me the confidence to have a go at things.
I did not learn much DIY growing up but have always tried to have a go, resulting in some near fatal mistakes. Today and I am 61, I put up a chrome soap dish and a glass shelf with chrome supports in the bathroom having to drill through tiles. My first ever such action and as ever Youtube came to my aid and it was pretty simple with no chips or cracks. Well chuffed.
Drilling through tiles is a bit of a 'brown trousers' moment, isn't it! I took my first foray into it very recently, and it all turned out OK, with no chips or cracks (save for the dinner I had afterwards, and the fact my trousers rode too low ). I think a lot of it is about confidence (and making non-fatal mistakes!).
