The myth that you "waste your life" building boats

Discussion in 'All Things Boats & Boating' started by Corley, Sep 12, 2017.

  1. Corley
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    Corley epoxy coated

    I see it thrown around a lot that you are going to "spend" or "waste" a lot of hours building a boat as if the spending of time is something that you get a say in. I have a good friend who has spent the last 20 years of his life not doing anything substantive. He told me the other day that he can't believe that time has just gone by and he doesn't have anything to show for it. Projects are good for your soul build that boat, fix that fence, paint your house, plant that flower garden, spend some time playing and being silly with your kids. Because none of that time you have "spent" is a waste it's a process of filling your life with richness and experiences. You also acquire a lot of useful skills from all that tinkering, building and doing. Not wanting to be preachy just sick of hearing the phrase "It was a waste of time and you could have just bought it".
     
  2. Mr Efficiency
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    Mr Efficiency Senior Member

    Well, whatever time you spend doing things you want and like to do, has always to be assessed against what it cost you, and not just financially, by doing it. Some people like feeding money into poker machines, but that usually costs a lot of money, so is an expensive and unproductive hobby. If you spend years building a boat that turns out to be not much of an asset at the end of it, though you might have acquired some skills and enjoyed doing it, it is a waste if there was the possibility to finish with a valuable asset, and have the same experiences doing it. Being wise before the event is the key, and the best hope for that is to be very well informed about what you are undertaking, not just go with the heart and ignore the head.
     
  3. rwatson
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    rwatson Senior Member

    Not wanting to be preachy just sick of hearing the phrase "It was a waste of time and you could have just bought it".

    If you don't like this phrase, don't get married or partnered up :)
     
  4. waikikin
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    waikikin Senior Member

    I here this stuff sometimes but wealth is not just measured in dollars & cents, building and repairing boats has been quite good for me. Sure there's other stuff that might have done better & I've done some of it didn't really interest me.... now I get to work in a place that's close to Heaven on Earth---- to me anyways:) Maybe some just don't have what it takes so seek another path...
     
  5. Mr Efficiency
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    Mr Efficiency Senior Member

    What did that famous English soccer player George Best say about his life, and fortune ?

    "I spent a lot of money on booze, birds and fast cars. The rest I just squandered."

    Each to his own. :)
     
  6. Corley
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    Corley epoxy coated

    I am married with two mad and beautiful kids, I must be lucky because the missus hates me buying new stuff unnecessarily and loves home built or made things. I guess just feeling reflective at the moment as helped clear out a friends place with his adult children the other day after he had passed away after a long illness. What is the measure of a man if not what he makes with his hands and the positive impacts he can have in his families life and the wellbeing of his community? He had a passion for building small simple but ornate inlaid boxes in blackwood his family gave me one to keep it is a work of rare precision and craftsmanship and not in this case blackwood (they said it was one of his early attempts). The level of grief was palpable of course but also the joy and the thankfulness, quite the legacy to leave.
     
    Last edited: Sep 12, 2017
  7. Corley
    Joined: Oct 2009
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    Corley epoxy coated

    Fair call I guess I'm not suggesting be heedless of common sense just settle on some goals and do them. It's easy to vacillate your life away and sometimes it's better to just do, even if things don't work out. In the scenario you mentioned the monetary value of the project you are describing may be low but if the person put the time and effort into building what they wanted then it isn't a waste, only by external measures can it characterized that way as the personal value can be very high.
     

  8. gonzo
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    gonzo Senior Member

    Throughout my life many people have spent their money to have me build and repair boats. I've done fairly well playing with boats.
     
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