AM I BORING?
By Myron Ferguson
I enjoy being a drywall contractor. I know it is not for everyone. I am also quite sure that a lot of people don’t want to have anything to do with drywall work. My family and friends have even said that I am overly enthusiastic about drywall work. I read about all phases of construction but mostly focus on drywall, insulation, building airtightness and sound control. I have a way of turning most any conversation into something about drywall (a trait that my wife finds endearing).
I have some friends that if I substituted the word football for drywall in the above paragraph it would describe them. I don’t watch much football and don’t even have a favorite team. I think football is kind of boring. So who is to say what boring is?
What caused me to write this blog is a comment I received from someone who had read my Fire-Resistant Drywall post. They simply said “You are Boring” I read it and said to myself that is kind of mean and then I deleted the comment. I wish I had left it just to see if it generated any other comments.
I remember a few years ago after a presentation I did at JLC Live. One of the other presenters jokingly (I think) said to me that when they walked by I was talking to a large group while I was holding a bag of joint compound, everyone seemed fascinated by what I was saying. He wondered what was wrong with them.
Of course, I know I can be a little boring or at least my topics for conversation can be a little boring, but I don’t really care. I love what I have chosen to do for a career, and I make a good living doing it.
I guess what I am looking for is an occasional comment where someone says wow this is “Pretty Exciting Stuff”
Myron,
Because of your passion for drywall your books and videos I was able to learn in this small town of Alaska the trade of drywall. It is a very rewarding job to take a home from insulation or open studs to beautiful finished walls, each step of the process is crucial for the end result and I think that is why we that understand this trade love and respect it so much. It truly is very rewarding! As a person that never had someone onsite to show me how to do every step it took me awhile to get professional at this, I want you to know that you were basically my onsite teacher and I’m thankful for it as well😎 Now I do all different phases from ground up, And I still get exited to do the drywall on our projects. I love trying new tools working on my bazooka flat boxes angle heads etc… so in my opinion your totally not boring! I really think that one of the coolest things about drywall is training others all the little perfectionist tricks to achieve the beautiful end result. Thanks again and cheers!
That’s what I am talking about. Thanks Shane
Myron,
Anyone with passion won’t be boring, except to those folks who are too narrowly focused or lack curiosity. Yes, if you have no interest in a person’s passion, then move on, so you won’t be “bored” or heaven forbid, learn something new. As my dad used to say, “A little knowledge is a dangerous thing, only stupidity is absolutely safe”!
I only wish I had your passion and talent for drywall. As a homeowner I’ve done a bit of it and am always amazed how difficult a “simple” thing can be! I always turn to your articles, your book and DVD and now your site before I tackle any sheetrock work. (Which I am now about to do again against my better judgement, I might add!).
Please keep sharing your passion! I have learned a lot from you, and other passionate folks like you (Dan Holohan for steam and hydronic heating, John Cataneo for plumbing, for example). I feel that as long as you continue to learn, you will continue to live, and live well.
Thanks Alex, That means a lot.
Anytime Myron (if I may be so bold to use your first name!). I wish you were in NYC as I’d lobby to have you teach at the General Society of Mechanics and Tradesmen of the City of New York (www.generalsociety.com), of which institution I am a proud member or “brother”. Might be cool for you to do a lecture too, like my mentor and friend Dan Holohan (https://youtu.be/TQB0KK2rxcw).
If you do get to NYC and would like a tour of this grand old building and library, let me know!
Myron,
You are not boring! You have passion for something. The world needs more passionate people in it. Whomever left that comment isn’t as interested in Drywall as you. They should go watch football, I suppose. It’s amazing, any time I look into a drywall problem or topic, I wind up reading something you have written. Keep doing what you’re doing. There are many more who appreciate the time, energy and passion you put into what you do and what you write, and find it anything but boring.
My take is that you’re a craftsman who’s generous (and traditional) enough to share your craft expertise and experience. Today we don’t have enough of that resource and spirit so that “construction” workers all too often don’t know, and come to value and practice, craftsmanship.
I learned from middle-aged guys who’d absorbed traditional practice on site so what I gained (and retained..) was essentially the Victorian apprenticeship way. That was in the 60’s in London. I also worked in France and Denmark. We used drywall (“plasterboard”) but, as our work was mostly renovation (sometimes on architectural masterpieces), I learned how to plaster including running ceiling mouldings (UK english..) and rosettes. Not bad for a carpenter. Your teaching challenges me to do it with modern materials and the InterNet is the modern medium, the new tradition in the ‘old’ way.
I’d reserve ‘boring’ for those chirpers and beetles and our time and respect for neither!
Thanks Nic and all the best
They probably have that narrow-minded knowledge to not even know the importance of drywall. Nothing is boring with an individual with passion towards his/her work! Keep it going! 🙂
If it were true that the majority of people out there found drywall boring, then I don’t believe that 3 out of the top 10 videos on the Fine Homebuilding YouTube channel would feature you demonstrating how to hang and tape drywall….but 3 of them definitely do! All together, those 3 videos have been viewed nearly 5 million times!
Wow Thanks Rob, I think drywall is a very popular topic because most every homeowner will at one time or another be faced with doing some drywall work even if it is only a repair. Drywall does cover over 80% of the visible surfaces in a building. Doing drywall work is exciting fast paced work that requires quite a bit of skill. It just doesn’t excite people as much as a new stone patio or a kitchen remodel.
I have been accused of being overly enthusiastic about drywall work, but I think it is more about my love of being a building contractor than my love of drywall specifically.