What's your special talent, Breakfast Club style? (Page 3)

Originally posted by popsracer

Yep, we had the 8 track and would love to do a duet with you.

Originally posted by switch

OK, like Salty, I'm trying to see how disparate I can make my three points:

1) I bake by feel--pie crusts, pizza dough, bread, cookies, quickbreads--handfulls and pinches style, and in the winter I cook that stuff in an Amish wood cookstove.

2) I've read the Iliad and the Odyssey in the original Attic Greek, though each one took a year.

3) I was taught self-hypnosis as a kid, and use it regularly as an adult--learning a new technique in something, public speaking, training/competing, child birth etc.

 

Originally posted by switch

Did you learn the Rubik's Cube thing by reading the book, or did you just figure it out.  I actually tried to learn how to do this, and, again, didn't have the patience.  (uh oh, I see a trend)

100% misunderstanding is also pretty impressive.  I certainly have days (weeks?) when I do that with my husband and they suck.  Sorry man :/

Originally posted by kevin_trappFor the Rubik's cube, it was learned from the internet. There's no way I could have figured it out by myself, and it's definitely easier for someone to learn than you'd think. But with the 100% misunderstanding, well I pretty much assume my wife is always horny like me. Sadly, I'm wrong more often then not . Maybe I'm projecting.

Originally posted by Asalzwed Woah. Like woah! Read to me in Greek before bed? Pullllease?

Originally posted by So Fresh So Clean1. I can hardboil and poach an egg perfectly. I don't eat them, but my wife has me do it because she can't get the yokes to be gelatinous.2. I am really funny when I don't try to be, and I am downright not when I try.3. I can bunny-hop a bicycle <---- not too special on a tri website.

Originally posted by Socks

I can make an excellent pizza

I can tie a knot thru a straw................

I am excellent at arthroscopy.  Really I say everyone has a gift and that one is mine.  I'm really good at arthroscopy but is goes with the tying a knot thru a straw thing :)

Funny story.  I am a sports trained orthopedist.  When I say I can tie a knot thru a straw we pass sutures thru cannulas (straws) into the joint and then pass the suture thru tissue then tie a knot and we watch on a TV monitor.  So I was doing a case and the sutures were passed and I thru the knot and pass the suture thru the cannula and it comes onto the screen and pulls the tissue over and the student scrub tech in the room says really loud "DAMN girl you got SKILLS!"  It was hysterical everyone broke out laughing

Originally posted by switch Lol, now you've lost me...I have no idea what you're talking about

Originally posted by kevin_trappUgh, drunk BT posting. Sorry about that.

Originally posted by switch That is awesome   I work for a congenital heart surgeon and have witnessed this knot in a straw thing--mad skillz indeed.  I'm always impressed with women orthopods.  My impression is that it can be a very tough road.  Kudos. 

Originally posted by moondawg14

WHOA.  I thought you had to go to school for that!  Never heard of someone being born with it.

Originally posted by bootygirl

. Awesome. Any time!

Originally posted by moondawg14

 

I would like to try out for the part of Pontius Pilate.   (My friend wants to start a "Pontius Pilates" class.  It's like regular Pilates, except you wash your hands when you're done.)

 

My "special skill" is that I can learn almost any activity to proficiency almost instantly and without being taught... but I don't have the patience to master any skill.

For instance, with most instruments I can sit down and be playing a song within an hour.... but even after years of practice it would still sound like a beginner.

I can also fix almost anything.

Originally posted by switch So you're good with your hands?

Originally posted by lkct01234

I am lurking...but can't think of anything that is a "special" talent. I found out, recently, that I make really cute babies that have lots of hair...

 

And when I asked my hubby whether I had any special talents, he didn't respond...but got a really big grin on his face. I guess that's up to interpretation.

Originally posted by moondawg14

I've never had any complaints.

Originally posted by switch No complaints?  Bwahaha, well, ok.

Is there something you've tried to fix and you couldn't?

Originally posted by moondawg14

 

Oh, sure.  Electronic things with tiny surface-mount parts.  Or metal or plastic parts that require casting and/or molding to really get them fixed.  Usually, in that case, it's better just to buy a new one because the thing itself is just too cheap to worry about fixing. 

The internet has really been a great way to find parts for things.  I grew up in the sort of "transition time" between the "fix it" and the "throw-away and buy new" generations.   Things were still made with fairly common parts, but you could hardly ever order them, even from the manufacturer. 

Now, we're squarely in the "throw it away and buy new" generation.  BUT, because of the internet, the people who make all of the little pieces and parts can sell them directly on a website.  OR, you can go find a website that has surplus of standard parts.   So, if you break some damn little gear or plastic part, there's a good chance you can find it on the interwebs and get a new one.  I've had our Wii apart several times to replace the DVD drive and the internal fan. (it needs another new fan right now)  They use a tamper-resistant tri-wing screw in several places but guess what? You can find the screwdriver on the internet!

A little proficiency with a screwdriver (and a good memory for where all the little different screws go) can really go a long way these days.   A good rule of thumb is:  If it's bigger than a breadbox, I can probably fix it.

Originally posted by switch

That is a rockin head o hair.  How you doing Mommy?  Are you getting any sleep?

You guys are at five weeks post?  Is that about right?

Two thumbs up to your special talent, btw.  Just remember--you could be very fertile right now

Originally posted by switch

I think that's a really cool special talent to have, and one I'm pretty jealous of as I can't fix a damn thing.  Actually, I would really just like to learn wrenching skillz for my bike.  I would be pretty happy to hold there.  It's on my to-do list...

How'd you learn how to fix stuff?  Why do you have the patience for that? 

Originally posted by lkct01234

Baby is doing well...mom & dad are easily irritable and quite tired :-) 5 weeks today, indeed!

DT/hubby is quite tolerant of me (could be his special talent!) but we've both decided that neither of us want me to be pregnant again! :-)

Originally posted by moondawg14

When something is broken, take it apart.    Seriously.  Do not EVER throw something away before taking it apart.  I've been doing this since I was eight.

Get it all the way down to all of its little pieces.   Make sure every screw is out.  Make sure every connector is unplugged.  Gears come off of shafts, etc.  This rarely-if-ever takes more than 10 minutes. 

Now, if you can't figure out why it was broken, put it back together and throw it away.  Better yet... put all of the similar non-broken pieces in little containers in the garage.  Screws.  Motors. Gears. Wires.  all in little containers.

Next time something breaks... do the same thing.  Many times, you see something broken and say: "Hey, I have one of those in the garage!   Sometimes it fits, sometimes it don't. You're learning how things are assembled, what they use to assemble them, how they make parts move, etc.

I admit that I had a huge "leg up" in that I had a grandfather that had already been taking stuff apart for 50 years before I got old enough to take stuff apart.  How much stuff?   A two-car garage that could not fit any cars.  one 20foot section of wall, from floor to ceiling, with 50 years of Maxwell House coffee cans full to the brim and labelled with things like "3/8 bolts"  "1/4-20 nuts"  etc.    Lathes? 3 of them.  A milling machine.  Drill press.  etc.

So, even if *I* couldn't fix things, I had a good resource who probably could. 

I have the patience to fix stuff because I'm a huge tight-wad, or rather, I like to spend on things that are a good value, even if they're expensive.   Also, I can't stand paying someone to do something that I can do.   And I hate it when something that I've bought breaks.  I don't want to buy another one.  So I always try to fix it.  

With "hobbies" I don't have any real drive to be good at it, I just want to learn it.  I like the learning better than the doing, usually.

For your bike, when something breaks, by God, take it apart!  Your bike mechanic will almost always be able to fix it.  If you take something to your bike mechanic and he gives you gruff for taking something apart, find a new one.   A good mechanic will ALWAYS understand when someone wants to figure out how something works... because good mechanics feel the same way!

I bent the "downshift" lever on my X9 mountain bike shifter.   Rather than buy a new one, I took it apart.   I put the lever in the vise and bent it back mostly into shape.   Then, I figured out how the shifter worked, and put it back together.   Took me about an hour, AND I learned how the shifter worked.  REALLY cool design, internally.  And I saved a few bucks over a new shifter.

Start with little projects.  Change the oil in your truck.  Once you figure out how to do easy things, the hard things seem more possible.