22 March 2013

A capable husband

I think I'll be back writing new posts on Monday. My foot is on the mend.  :- )

The following was written in March 2010.
....♥....

I think most of us become more selective as we age. When I was younger I wanted to experience everything I could so I would know rather than surmise. I'm happy enough now to leave things I'm not interested in. The ability and the sense to do that came to me with age, although I think many people are like that all through life. Now, at this point in life I know that it would have been prudent to choose a husband who possessed skills that would compliment, and not duplicate, mine. If I were looking for a husband now, the colour of his eyes wouldn't matter, I would want to know if he could successfully raise an organic vegetable garden. Hindsight is a wonderful thing but the truth is I was rarely prudent in my younger years and when Hanno wandered into my life I never once thought of any of those practical considerations, I just loved him. I was more concerned with what was in his heart rather than in his bank account.


When I hang clothes or towels, the frame sits on its own legs. When I have sheets on the line, we use a little steel support to hold the line up a bit.

Now it's a bonus to me that he is multiskilled. Not only does he possess the skills of his former trade - mechanics, he can turn his hand to most things in the home. He can make furniture, repair the roof, rewire a lamp, unblock the plumbing, fix the car and cook delicious potato pancakes. I think I hit the jackpot.
It just pulls down from the roof where it sits when not in use.

A while ago, I asked Hanno to make me an all weather washing line. I wanted something better than the rope line we had strung up on the back verandah. I wanted a line that I could use when it was raining, that was ready to go all the time but would be out of the way. I needed a line that I could reach without stretching and one that would hold a full load of washing. That was the brief - it's been delivered.

When the washing is dry, the frame is lifted up to the roof again, out of the way.

Even though it was some time ago that I asked for this washing line, Hanno did start working on it almost immediately. We settled on a steel frame that would be able to hold a full wash and last a long time but we had no way of welding the pieces together. Luckily for us, our neighbour John just bought a new welder. Hanno and John put the line together on the weekend and the ideal testing weather promptly arrived soon after. Five inches of rain fell yesterday, much less that what was predicted - 12 inches, but a real soaking nonetheless. I pulled the line down from where it is safely tucked away, pegged on the laundry and stood back to admire the scene. There are a few things that really improve with age, a capable husband is one of them. Thank you Hanno (and John).

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29 comments

  1. That is a great washing line! I'm going to show this to my husband; we could probably do something similar on our back porch, though it doesn't rain all that much here to begin with. I fell in love with my husband on our first date; he had sewn a button onto his shirt to replace one which had fallen off. I noticed the button when he came to pick me up because it was slightly different from the others on the shirt. I knew that he must have been a multi-skilled and resourceful person, right then and there. :)

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  2. It my case too it was good luck rather than planning that brought me a capable husband. Just this year hes built a chook house, a cupboard and a large folding table. I so admire him, and practical people full stop. So glad i was over 'cool' in people and life before i chose my partner!

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  3. Really pleased to learn your foot is on the mend...at last
    Kay

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  4. Howard has so often proved to be multi skilled - from illustrating labels for presents of sloe gin, cooking, cleaning out of reach places, chicken herding right through to building sheds and repairing fences without the aid of power tools. His skills quota is wide ranging.

    I pride myself on my own financial independence, so I was never looking for a breadwinner. I was looking for an equal. When we met he was a struggling freelancer. He eventually found a well paid job, and I was able to go back to college for a while. But above all, when I was stuck in bed with my leg in plaster, he was able to take care of the house, the hens and me without the need for me to demand anything of him (well, apart the night I asked him to fetch me a hacksaw so I could remove the cast - he declined that).

    We are a team, skills I lack, he has, and vice versa. He is modest, considerate and slow to rage.

    I fell on my feet.

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    1. You sure did fall on your feet with Howard. I can't say that I was looking for anything when I met Hanno but if I was it would have been an equal or a partner in every sense of that word. I love your comment, thank you.

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    2. I love that you describe yourself as a team. My husband and I feel like partners in every sense - in love, in finance, in goals, in planning. It's a good feeling. My organisation, planning and admin compliment his energy, physical strength and practical skills.
      That wild sailor my teenage self fell for has proven himself over and over throughout our life together.
      I am quietly grateful every time he pulls out that cordless screwdriver.
      :-)
      Karen

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  5. That's beautiful Shows what was in his heart is still good too. Cherrie

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  6. Remembering these old posts and looking at their posted dates makes me marvel at the time flying by. I could have sworn you had only written this one last year! Glad you are feeling better and better. There is nothing like a bit of set back to remind you how beaut the good times are.

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  7. That's an amazing contraption! Glad your foot is improving.

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  8. Rhonda, do you think the zinc is helping to heal your foot? Such good news that it is improving and I hope the workshops have been going really well. Our local Toowoomba Simple Living Group is still going well and Margy has organised a Composting and No-Dig Garden Workshop tomorrow http://simplelivingtoowoomba.weebly.com/workshop-information.html. I was going to promote it on the forum but it is still down and I know you won't mind me mentioning it here seeing as you were the inspiration for the group starting up in the first place. I hope your foot heals up quickly and life can back to normal for you as soon as possible. Thank goodness you have such a wonderful husband in Hanno.

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  9. Your Hanno is a real treasure. I have one too. We are lucky girls.

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  10. It sure seems that you did hit the jackpot, Rhonda. Lucky you.

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  11. Dear Rhonda, so glad to hear that your foot is on the mend. The trick now will be not to overdo it!
    Kind regards,

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  12. I always said that men like your Hanno are a rare breed. Unfortunately, my partner is the opposite to Hanno. Any DIY jobs around the home are done by me as I know how useless he is with tools. He might actually do himself an injury rather than achieve the task. He has no abtitude to gardening either, but he can cook a simple meal if needed to. He works all week as security guard and brings hoe the bacon, so to speak. This has enabled me to scale down my working hours to half the week due to some tennis elbow problems. I get more time to do my work at home now, and for that I`m greatful. On occasions it would be nice to have a handy man around the home, but we can`t all have the Hanno`s of this world, now can we?

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  13. So good to hear that your foot is in the mend, Rhonda.

    You did hit the jackpot with Hanno - and he with you xx

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  14. Great news Rhonda, but please be careful not to start too soon.
    Thank you so much for all the wonderful old posts !!!
    have a great weekend.

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  15. I am on my own but have come to be my own handyman - handy-person in my case! It's great to see couples working together.

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  16. Fabulous news about your foot, Rhonda! And how lovely to read that post about Hanno - you certainly have hit the jackpot. I feel the same way about my Mr Happy Larder - he can mend & build anything from bookshelves to bathrooms and every year he makes me a beautiful advent calendar with photos of that year to remind us of all the lovely times we spent together. Jackpot, I'd say.

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  17. Way to go Hanno! Happy to hear the good news about your foot!

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  18. I just discovered your blog and WOW!!! It was JUST what I needed to get out of my rut. Just the other night I had a nervous breakdown to my husband about how our house was ugly and old and I wouldn't be satisfied until it was all fixed up and fresh looking and I was feeling so overwhelmed. I've read maybe 20? of your posts now and some of them have just cut me to the core! How selfish and how materialistic I've been!!! I just need to start small, do what I can, and this house will never be pleasant for my son if I'm being so negative about it. My husband and son both enjoy spending time at home (he is almost 3) and I should just jump right in there and make it pleasant with my time and talents and not whatever random crap I buy in the store. Oh my gosh Rhonda you have no idea how much this has benefited me and I was just telling my husband about your blog and showing him a few posts that really enlightened me. I listened to your 2 old radio spots (from '09 and '10) and your voice just totally calmed me (plus I LOVE the accent so cute!!!) and you really make me feel like... I can do this!!!! I work FT for now but my heart is at home... luckily our only debt is our house payment (husband watches our son at home and does manly-type work around the house) and so as soon as we can get that paid down quite a bit over the next few years then we can both seek PT work and I think that will bring more balance to our lives, that is the goal anyway. For now, small steps and a HUGE thank you to you and your work.

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    1. Hello Kate, welcome to the blog. Don't be too hard on yourself. Most of us have been conditioned in some way to spend, waste and want more. It sounds like you've got a good working team there. We have quite a few stay at home men here, looking after children and growing food in the backyard while their partners are out earning a living. I hope you find a lot of info here to help you both on your way.

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    2. Thanks Rhonda for your encouraging words and nice to "meet" you. You are right I have a fantastic team, my hubby and son are so good to me, I can't go wrong! :)

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  19. So glad that you are on the mend! You and Hanno make a great team(and nothing wrong with you being drawn in with his gorgeous blue eyes!) I also fell in love with a set of blue/green eyes and along with that I too have the best of husbands who can do almost anything, building furniture, gardening, repair work and is a great cook too. After almost 52 years, I am so thankful for my man! Blessings, Carolyn in Florida

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  20. Life can be wonderful with a clever partner. Loved your line "to experience everything I could so I would know rather than surmise." Yes, our wants and needs change as we age. It's good that you two have grown up together.

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  21. Always appreciate what you have to share...so practical and all. And so nice that you found Hanno...PLUS he can cook!! And not hard on the eyes either...though I am with you...tis what is inside that really counts!! My Mama used to say: "Pretty is as pretty does." I took her advice to heart too. I am happy with the husband I am growing old with.
    Elizabeth in VA

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  22. g'day rhonda & hanno

    glad to hear that your foot is finally on the mend but please do still take it easy for a bit longer, you don't want it flaring up again; indeed you do have a wonderful partner there in hanno & he also compliments you too, you are a great working team :))
    loved catching up with last weeks blogs, have been away for a week down with the kids in their new house (bought & yes they have a mortgage) my daughter loved her jumper i made, i was going to pop it into the forum but have noticed that there have been no new posts since i've been gone, i did read you were having problems & it was under repair so i will wait til the new week before posting
    hope you had a great weekend

    selina from kilkivan qld

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  23. Hi Selina. Congratulation to the kids on their new home. How exciting! The forum is still down but we have someone working on it. It's a slow process. Looking forward to seeing the jumper you made, I hope it won't be too long before we're all back there.

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  24. Fantastic idea, if only I had the undercover area.

    http://2cheekyturtles.blogspot.com.au/

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  25. I remember when you had the new clothes line installed. I've wanted one ever since then. Would you mind, please, showing more details on the clothes line construction? I would like to have one made for me and need details of how it was put together and how it's attached. Thank you. Anita

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