Looking for a great Father’s Day gift for Get-It-Done Dad? You’re in the rightest place there is.
Here.
And you can trust my my gift recommending mojo. It’s is based on my gift-wanting juju. There’s no pattern here. Or order. Nothing lame either.
This year’s list includes everything from projects to products to pulse-pounding books, bangin’ booze, and other awesome stuff.
The reason for FunFifteen is that Top 10 is hackneyed. None of that here. And, I played Rugby Union for years (you’re going to watch it in the Olympics,, right!??!?!) There are 15 players per side. I was #15. Basically, he number is stomped into my gene code. So (staying with the rugby theme) here’s a ruck-over of fifteen fun things I’ve worked with, want to work with more, and—even though I don’t believe those commercials where someone parks a car in the driveway with a giant red bow on it (how did you drive it there, huh, huh?) have a scintilla of reality in them—want to see parked in my driveway with a giant red bow on it.
GO…
Compost Bin. I decided to include this project while turning over soil that used to be banana peels and egg shells and other rubbish from my kitchen. Very few projects I’ve ever built have become such apart of my daily life—and make me feel good at the same time. We started filling the MyFixitUpLife compost bin almost a year ago. We packed it pretty much chock full the first day and have been adding to it (mostly stuff like coffee grounds, spoiled fruit, even paper towels with the stray landscape clipping or dead potted plant) ever since. Its almost pure compost and our family of four doesn’t produce enough kitchen scrap to fill it up. It makes me happy that one year’s worth of goop never went into a landfill, or a garbage truck or an incinerator. And yes, we will use the compost for anything from landscape repairs to gardening. Best yet: fun to build. Share the project with dad. Make it even better with a bunch of Western Red Cedar and maybe a tool or two (see below) to put it together. Get dirty.
Book It! If you’ve ever run to the grocery store, nevermind run a neighborhood 5K or trained for longer races, Chrisopher McDougall’s Born to Run is a real life adventure tracing and racing the impossible-to-catch ultra long distance—and apparently beer guzzling—runners of the Tarhumara people in Mexico. An ingenious look at our species, “born to run” isn’t a nod Springsteen, rather its a statement that our species—us, you and me and Bob over there—was built to be in motion over long distances like no other creature on earth. We’re not the fastest, nor the biggest, but we go the farthest. And this is no lame-o rundown of running. McDougall is a former war correspondent who will travel anywhere—including crossing the trade routes of uber violent drug traffickers—to get the story. Run.
Floor Mats. So the carpet floor mats that come with our big rigs and family cars don’t make sense to me. They’re there to protect the carpet underneath them, but no one ever takes them out to show the carpet underneath them. Result: mangy carpet your heel digs a hole in right near the gas pedal. And if muddy boots, dogs, tools, kids, cleats…you name it…are part of your vehicle’s haul package you can’t keep it clean or otherwise un-ruined, right? Well, the awesome Weathertech floor mats short circuit that failure loop. They’re rigid, rugged, awesome—and unlike stupid carpet—cleanable. Wash them down with soapy water and blast with garden hose. What’s more, they don’t slip around and move like other floor mats I’ve seen and my heel hasn’t worn even the beginnings of a hole in them. These are like body armor for your vehicle’s floors.
DeWalt 20 Volt Max Cordless Impact Driver. DeWalt’s DCF895L2 cordless impact driver looks like a combination of technological improvements and relevant design innovation that combine to make a league leader out of the chute. The motor is brushless which promises 57% more run time (5% would be great, 57%=spectacular) over brushed DeWalt tools. The battery and other tool design elements combine to deliver an impact driver that packs a wollop. I haven’t given this the full run-through yet, but all signals are flat-out: 6 inch FastenMaster screws into cedar have no chance, nevermind drywall screws and 3 inch deckers. The bit holder is innovative and the belt hook makes sense. There’s even a 3-bulb “stay on after trigger pull” work light that I know will come in
handy. The unit even has 3 speeds and a battery fuel gauge. Hit this thing up for the screwdriving, hole drilling—perhaps compost bin-building— Get-It-Done dad on your list. He’ll be building something with it before the wrapping paper hits the recycle bin.
The Carpenter’s Notebook. By me. Part novel, part how-to, part love story. It’s the epic (yes, I said epic…might not mean it but it sounds right so stay with me) story of a man whose life has gone wrong. Faced with the catastrophe of divorce, he’s at once trying to re-build a house, re-build a life and re-build his love for his family. Life isn’t about what you’re given, it’s about making the most of what you’ve got. Man up. Make it happen.
Mega Mower. I haven’t used this one yet, but if you’ve got lots of grass that needs to be shorter than it is now—and a yard with either lots of real estate to buzz and/or lots of ins, outs, and other obstacles that needs high-speed, zero-turn action, Troy-Bilt’s TB WC 33XP 33 inch Wide Cut Self-Propelled walk behind (or run behind, it has a 344 cc engine) looks like a solution to cutting lots of grass and wasting almost no time. At about $1,300 it’s far from free, but it looks like an affordable entry point into this category of fast. With 3-in-1 capability (bag, side discharge, and mulch) it’ll get you where you’re going for all-season grass cutting and yard care. Run, don’t walk to check this out.
Popular Mechanics Mag. For the man who is curious how the world works—from home improvement tips to Area 51 to energy policy and space travel—Pop Mech has top drawer, above the fold, been-there-done-it journalists asking the questions and writing the stories. They’re on top of the world’s biggest architectural developments (literally sending a reporter up to the top of World Trade Center–1,) and they’re at the movies with Men In Black III. Add tools, gadgets and tech. If there’s something you’re NOT interested in every issue, let me know and I will send you to the ER to see if you’re alive.
Robert Irvine LIVE. We’ve all been to movies, concerts, sporting events, restaurants and bars, and even the circus, but rarely do you find yourself able to attend all of them at the same time which is what Robert Irvine LIVE appears to be. The trailer all by itself looks awesome, nevermind hours of Robert cooking, inspiring, rappelling—yes—and being rippin’ in shape. “This is audience participation all the way…there’s a lot of great surprises…even for me…because I don’t know half of what’s goin’ on…”Grab your black T-shirt and hope Dad is lucky enough that LIVE is coming to your town. And if it isn’t, maybe this is a good reason to hop a jet for a grown-up get-away. Cook it hot!
Kru 82 Vodka. This one is as much about the booze as the bottle it comes in. Kru 82 vodka is a premium vodka and to the extent I’m an authority on vodka (I’m not, see above though; not sure what he thinks, but I know he thinks it) I like it and they say it is premium, so it must be. Anyway, Kru sponsors some cool stuff like the TEVA Winter Mountain Games and events at SXSW music fair among other things. But what I dig are the shatter-proof bottles the stuff comes in. I use them for water bottles (once liberated of their luscious liquor) and they’re great on a project, home improvement site, or in the shop. Seriously. I also keep one in my gym bag. Plastic water bottles just don’t do it for me—plus half of them leak. Give me a ‘never say die goblet’ and I’ll fill it with the stuff that makes life worth living. Drink it in, man, drink it in.
DeWalt T-Handle Set. So once you get your grip on this thing, say sleepy-night-night to your screwdrivers. For Get-It-Done dads this thing will change your life for everything from knock-down (IKEA) furniture (DeWalt cringes when they hear me say this, but true is true) to micro-adjustments on your tools’ set screws to punch-list work like towel bars and toilet paper holders or cabinet door pulls and lock-sets.
The gig is this: The ratcheting T-handle accepts all kinds of drivers from star (or Torx, not sure who uses these) to Allen (little Allen wrench on IKEA stuff, you will not beat me), to Phillips. Grab hold of this one and enjoy the time it puts back in your life—and the frustration it removes.
Great Truckin’ Idea! Here’s the red bow part. I’m ready for Ford’s F-150 4×4 with EcoBoost to be in the driveway and hauling my home improvement loads around town. Now. This includes everything from a payload of mulch or rocks or 3/4 ply to towing a trailer full of the same thing (only more of it) to taking the kids to school and getting groceries. F-150 with the EcoBoost engine plants a flag for best-in-class technology and mileage. And this is just the engine. The trucks I drove (EcoBoost is available in all trim packages, not just a single model) rock. Fast, powerful, smooth, comfortable, get-up-and-get-the-hell-out good stuff. Ford says that EcoBoost generates 90 percent of its amazing 420 lb.-ft. of torque from 1,700 to 5,000 rpm.
And, F-150 with EcoBoost has best-in-class maximum towing capability at 11,300 lbs; best-in-class payload at 3,060 lbs, according to Ford. That’s a whole lotta delivery that’s fun to wheel around town. If you’re nervous about new technology, check out the EcoBoost 106,704 mile torture test. And if that’s not enough for you, the big bird of the F-150 crew is the roughneck Raptor. This thing is what Bad-Ass looks like with four wheel drive. Shift it into gear and truck it.
Screwed. One Good Turn: A Natural History of the Screwdriver and the Screw is one of the most interesting books I have ever sunk into. Author Witold Rybczynski (pronounced Vee-told Rib-chin-ski) takes us on a 1000 year tour of why the screw (and screwdriver) are the best tool of the last millennium. One of the things that really stuck with me from this book is how Witold, in a way, classifies the world: There are cultures that work off of workbenches (ours, for example, originating from Roman builders who also pioneered other tools and techniques). And then there are those that don’t, often working right off the ground. I also LOVE one of his criteria for why the development of the screw, which goes something like this: There are inventions that are inevitable, things like belts and shoes. But something so complex, yet universally applicable like the screw—and the machinery required to fabricate them and the resultant industrial society they helped create—requires such a once-in-a-thousand-years
mix of spectacular genius, insight, and hard work that it’s not inevitable at all that it gets made. So, as such, there is a before-and-after moment in human history because of it. Witold’s research is highly academic—speaking of genius, it’s not just any slob with access to Google that could write this—but his organization and writing style are fantastically accessible making One Good Turn a fun, fast read. And if this doesn’t hook you, Witold writes at length about the best-named tool—ever: The Commander Maul. Now that’s genius!
Go Native. I wear—and need to wear—sunglasses all the time. Whether I’m stylin’ down the highway in my Six-Four (because you know I do that…) or I’m building a deck or fence or running a chainsaw, I like to have something over my eyes. I despise throw-away safety glasses so its a battle to get me to wear them. Instead I often wear Native Eyewear’s Dash SS (for “small to medium profiles” according to Native, so if you have a bigger skull, check some of their other models). I like them because they’re comfortable and I dig the look. I can also prop them up on top of
my head and they neither pinch my brain until I have a migraine nor do they fall off. What’s more, the lenses swap out. So if you are working inside you can pop in the amber lenses (included) and still see what’s happening while keeping something over your eyes. I like them for riding or running, working or the above-mentioned stylin’. (Legal crap: I make no claim that these in fact are safety glasses and if you blind yourself wearing them after reading this, it’s not my fault. Capice?)
Top Pot Doughnuts. I saw the founder of this Seattle-based coffee and doughnut shop on the CNBC show How I Made My Millions. I dug their story because they’re the ultimate small-time, hands-on success story, but when I learned they remodeled and built-out their own shops—themselves—well, stick a gaff in my mouth—I was hooked. These guys are the real deal. So check out Mark and Michael Klebeck’s success and order some
doughnuts (they are “hand-forged,” love it) and coffee for ole dad. Have them sprinkled with a little success and serendipity. Or see if they’ll send some of their left over nails. What better way to enjoy being dad?
When In Rome. It has been said that when Rome ruled it was because of the many things they did better than everyone else at the time, and being organized topped the list. The same thing can be said of the successful—or at least less-frustrated—Get-It-Done dad. And to me, organization means having a place for the frillion things we need to fix houses and make stuff—everything from fasteners to pneumatic tools to the coping saw, router bits, batteries, chargers, cordless tools and more. No single tool organizer does it all, but every container used well is a step in the right direction. And because steps, notably steps taken moving tools around the shop or to different sites, is part and parcel with the Get-It-Done ethos (that’s right, there’s a G-I-D “ethos”) mobile organization gains the day. And to that end, the gift of organization—by organization I’m specifically referring to the Stanley 3-in-1 Mobile Workshop, the Stanley Fat Max Lock N’ Stock, and/or the Fat Max 4-in-1 Mobile Workstation—for my stuff would make
me a happy dad.
Whatever you get, I hope love is the best gift that comes your way.
Happy Father’s Day lads.
