So, you’re probably wondering who this “Bob Smith” guy is, and many of you are probably thinking that really can’t be his name. Well, believe it or not that really is my name. Now that we have that behind us, let’s get to know each other a bit.
How I Became A DIY’er
I’ll start by telling you how I got a start as a DIY’er, which started at home when I was just a kid. I grew up in Indiana in your typical blue-collar family. My parents, who I owe a lot of thanks to for making me who I am, worked hard to provide a good life for us. If there’s one thing, I am most grateful to them for instilling in me was a good work ethic both on the job and at home.
As a kid, I didn’t realize we didn’t have an abundance of money, but thanks to my parents we always had everything we needed. Food was always on the table, we always had a roof over our head, and heat during the winter (even if mom turned it down at night and suspiciously waited until she ripped the covers off the bed getting us up in the morning for school).
When it came to fixing, building, or renovating things at the house we usually couldn’t afford to pay a professional to do the job and my parents had to do it themselves. This set the stage for my own journey to become a DIY’er. I vividly remember helping install a new water softener when I was eight. At eleven I was helping put on a new roof on our house, and at twelve I helped build a two-story deck. From there my skills and projects only grew.
What else am I?
Now for the other boring stuff about me… After high school I went on to college at Indiana University, which is arguably one of the most beautiful campuses. You can wander through the grounds for days and not see it all. From there I went on to a twenty-one year career in the U.S. Army, and retired in December of 2021. I was fortunate to have the opportunity to serve all over the world, and hone my project management skills making me better at planning my DIY projects. A subject I discuss in one of my blog posts.
When I’m not knee deep in a project, I try to enjoy life to the fullest, and I do tend to keep myself busy. What can I say I don’t sit still well, living an active lifestyle. I’m passionate about my health and fitness. I also love being outdoors and participating in a wide range of activities. In warmer months you can find me fishing out on my boat or cooking on the BBQ. Then in winter I enjoy snowshoeing and skiing. I’m not the best skier and spend more time falling on my butt than actually cruising down the mountain. Like many things you don’t have to be good at it to enjoy it.
I’m also a dad to an amazing teenage boy. I know most parents say that, but he really is a great kid. He doesn’t share my passion for DIY, at least not yet, but I do include him in my projects. I believe I owe it to him to teach him the skills, so when he owns a home, he knows how to do it himself too. This is something I encourage you to do with your kids too. I’ll share project ideas you can do with your kids in future posts.
So I’m retired now what? I’m taking full advantage of it, and taking my passion for home improvement and DIY to the next level. What does this mean? Now, DIY and home improvement is what I do everyday. After I retired, rather than moving on to another job, I started working for myself as a real estate investor finding houses to fix up to flip or rent. This has been deeply rewarding for me, being able to do what I enjoy doing every day.
At the time of writing this I currently have one flip underway, and just put another property under contract. It keeps me busy, but I enjoy it. As the saying goes “A man who loves his job, never works a day in his life”. There’s definitely truth in those words.
My Blog
So why a DIY Blog? I love DIY and home improvement projects, talking about them, and sharing ideas and advice with others for their projects. I’ve spent hours on DIY discussion forums, YouTube channels, and Facebook forums, interacting with other DIY’ers, and wanting to interact with more DIY’ers of all skill levels. Then the idea, and no it wasn’t some crazy epiphany. It was about three in the morning; I was in bed half awake and half asleep and the idea of starting a blog crept into my head. When I woke up it was still there, so I went with it. Which brings us to where we are today.
I hope you all enjoyed getting to know a bit about me and look forward to interacting with and getting to know you. I invite you to share you thoughts and ideas, and enjoy our DIY journeys together!
Happy Building!
Bob