Early in my life, I spent a lot of my time building things. I worked construction, built buildings, I set tile for a bit, I worked at for a small company that built elaborate stores for musician retail chain. I also built skateboard ramps, a lot of skateboard ramps.

At some point along the way I made a change and began building digital things. While I don't regret making that change I often miss the days of building things that last and don't have a beta version. There is still a sense of pride driving by buildings in town that I helped build. You don't get that experience building digital things, they don't exist in the physical world, and they are often deleted within a few short years for a version 2.0.

I am often inspired by Youtubers who DIY. They build, modify and create their own universe.

The Make Everything channel is a new discovery for me. Their ability to make DIY'ing approachable is their gift to us. Sure, I could just go buy these products, and I won't have had to buy the tools to do so. But there is something special about creating a thing yourself. Often you are able to create something that you couldn't buy, it just doesn't exist.

Van Neistat is great, his ability to be such a creative and bring that creativity to making is the best. His DIY projects always solve a real-world problem.

The Essential Craftsman I love this channel so much. They bring so much knowledge and wisdom from a lifetime of building making and DIY'ng. I also kinda love that they are fellow Pacific North westerners, and Oregonians. I have been using a worm drive skill saw for my whole life, and yet, I still learned things from this video.

After moving into a new home, I wondered what to do with this awkward cubby space inside one of the bathrooms. It seemed to be this odd leftover space, almost like an afterthought during the build. After measuring and a few internet searches it was obvious that the space was not going to work will with standard shelf sizes and that I would have to build my own.

After fixing the cubby it was time to address the chair mat in my office. Instead of one of those plastic chair mats I decided to make my own. Using some 5/8" plywood and some linoleum flooring did the trick.

I am already thinking about what I would have done different and if there should be a version two. Namely I would have used a whole 48"X96" sheet to extend the rolling space to the cabinets just out of frame.. maybe next time.

Every project needs a soundtrack, that's rule one: