Friday, June 20, 2008

Where the Wild Things Are...

Rotten Correspondent asked "If you were signing up to spend three months in very close quarters with one or two other people, three months of hard work and lots of uncertainty, three months of totally depending on those other people (or person) to help get you all through..."

I seemed to have a lot to say on the subject, so I thought I'd post on it. I hated to kidnap her comments. :)

btw - if you've never read Rotten's blog you owe it to yourself to check it out. She always asks the greatest thought-provoking questions, and she writes some of the funniest stories about her world...


So, she was talking about a Discovery Channel show, where a bunch of groups were dropped into the Alaskan wild for 3 months. I would probably be a candidate for that show...

I would absolutely take my immediate family - my Mom, Dad and both of my brothers would be invaluable in those circumstances.

My parents both grew up on farms. My Dad is amazing at making things, like McGuyver; he knows how to grow food, and he is a very hard worker. My Mom is amazing at cooking something out of nothing, so knows how to grow food, and she is a very hard worker.

My brother W is hilarious, is the love of my life, is totally amazing at keeping the peace, and he is a very hard worker. I'd spend the 3 months in the wilderness just to get that much uninterrupted time with my brother. He's just that wonderful to be around. I miss him terribly, because I live out of state.

My other brother W is kinda a hard-headed ass, but I love him dearly. He is also mechanically amazing, like my Dad, and (you guessed it) he's a hard worker. Oh, and he's freakin' smart as all get-out. He's also easy to work with, even though he's hard-headed. Wierd, huh?

Can you sense a theme? In my family hard work is expected. You get NO respect if you are lazy. Being lazy is worse than being a total pain-in-the ass.

Also, both of my brothers hunt. Dad gave it up a while back, but I'm sure he would go out if he thought we needed him to. I'm also pretty sure could hunt too, but I wouldn't want to. I know it would hurt my feelings, but I would kill to eat. I know I would, I just really hope I never have to...

The biggest thing of all?!?! Living with my hubby has taught me that not just anyone can work well with others.

My family has ALWAYS done chores on the farm together. We still do when we get together on the farm for holidays, or to harvest vegetables and fruits for canning, etc. My hubby never had to do chores with a group, so he doesn't really understand group dynamics.

You see, he can't really just go with the flow and do what needs doing. People working together seem to unnerve him. He's cool with being around people, just not while they are working. It really sucks.

Then there is the fact that he can't do tandem chores easily. You know how when you need to move a folding table, you kinda pick up one end, someone else picks up the other, and you use head or body movements to signal your movement intent? He doesn't get that. He can't move a table without first knowing EXACTLY wher you are moving it to...who's going first...what the trajectory should be... and who is in "command" of the move. I mean, shit, it's just a freakin' table!

Anyway, he tries. He does work hard - if individually. So, you give him a task like chopping wood, he's amazing. He'll work til he drops. He'd be sad to know it, but I still wouldn't choose him for the 3 months. It boils down to needing better cooperation with my companions.

3 comments:

Gemini Girl said...

I would def take my husband bec he too was raised on a farm. He is no stranger to hard work, and he can build and fix anything. He is studyuing to me a mechanical engineer as we speak- so he would def be the guy to go with.

MrsSpock said...

LOL...my husband and I saw the commercial for that show and I immediately said "You would do great at that". And of course he replied "And you would be dead in 48 hours". I can do the teamwork thing, but I am a world-class wuss. My husband is the guy that used to live on an oil rig 10 months out of the year and spend 16 hours a day under the sea. No thanks.

Stacie said...

I'd take my mom. Together, we can do almost anything (we even reroofed her house). If my dad were here, I'd take him, too. I don't think I would take Isaac (sorry hun) because he isn't one for manual labor. He tends to disappear "to get something" when the hard work has to be done, only to reappear when things are wrapping up. Don't know how he always manages it, but he does!