"The Power of TOOLS"

"The Power of TOOLS" - Meredith Myers from Meredith Myers on Vimeo.

*For a direct link to "The Power of TOOLS" video, click here.

To honor the incredible women that come out to my Do-It HERSELF workshops at The Home Depot, I created my first non-literary parody music video called "The Power of TOOLS" - mashing up power tools with one of my favorite 80's songs.  I am constantly amazed at the power of WOMEN!!!  We really can do anything with the right instruction and encouragement and I thank each and every one of you for reminding me of that every third Thursday of the month when we come together at the workshop to learn a new home improvement skill.  I also want to thank The Home Depot for allowing a creative and comical person like myself to still find a useful purpose in an environment where most of the time I am not exactly an expert.  Hosting these  Do-It HERSELF workshops has truly become the highlight of my time spent in the orange apron! 

I have included the lyrics of the song in this post because that is what is most important in this video, not my cute tool outfits (even though I loved making them.)  This song is called "The Power of Tools" but more importantly, it is about the "Power of YOU."  Anything is possible ladies, so as they say on those orange buckets...Let's Do This!

“The Power of TOOLS” 

by Meredith Myers

The POWER of TOOLS

Is a curious thing

Make one MAN weep,

Make another WOMAN sing

SAND a DOOR

TILE a FLOOR

More than DRILLING

That's the power of TOOLS

TOUGH like HAMMERS,

ROUGH like SAWS

Stronger and harder

Than HOMER'S dreams

Make a bad project good

Make a wrong one right

Power TOOLS

Might keep you up all night

(Chorus 1)

Use a ROLLAR
To PAINT that FRAME

Might need a PLUNGER

To clear that DRAIN

It's strong and it's sudden

And it's cool sometimes

You might just save some TIME

That's the power of TOOLS

I love POWER TOOLS

First time you try it,

It might make you mad

Next time you use it

It will make you glad

But you'll be good, LADY

When you've found

POWER TOOLS

Make the world go' round

(Chorus 2)

Use a ROLLAR
To PAINT that FRAME

Might need a PLUNGER

To clear that DRAIN

It's strong and it's sudden

And it's cool sometimes

You might just save some TIME

Some say WHAT I WEAR is really WEIRD

Yeah, but I don't care

But you'll know what to do

Thanks to my WORKSHOPS here

And with a little help from above

You feel the power of TOOLS

Feel the power of TOOLS

Want to feel it?

Hmmm

(Guitar solo)

(Chorus 3)

Use a ROLLAR
To PAINT that FRAME

Might need a PLUNGER

To clear that DRAIN

I’m TOUGHER than DIAMONDS

And STRONGER than STEEL

You won't feel nothin'

Till you feel

You feel the POWER?

Just the power of TOOLS

That's the POWER,

That's the power of YOU

YOU feel the power of TOOLS

I feel the power of TOOLS

I SEE the POWER in YOU

Thanks to all of my wonderful workshop ladies
at Home Depot store #6304.

Sick of New Year's Resolutions

It seems only appropriate that I was sick as 2013 merged into 2014.  For too many years, I have been obsessed with the symbology of dates and committing to holiday traditions that often my plans and resolutions got in the way of me actually enjoying anything.

This holiday season (and for the first time in my life), I was sick for the weeks leading up to Christmas and into the New Year.  It was a real wake-up call to the things that are most important.  Family?  Yes.  Eggnog?  No.  Today is the first day that my head is actually clear enough for me to write and perhaps attempt to go to the gym.  I also said that on Monday but I chickened out.

As a result of being under the weather for such an extended period of time, I had to learn to let go of some of the plans I had made so I could instead lay in bed and do absolutely nothing.  Often out of boredom and a deep need to not let people down, I would down a few Dayquil and try to show up for a friend, a family member, or commit to a work obligation, but as a result, I would be back in bed the next day feeling worse, the sickness cycle starting all over once again.  It was then that I realized I wasn’t going to be able to please everyone.  I would have to accept the fact that I was defeated by health conditions that were beyond my control and would simply have to allow the virus to take its course, however long that would take.

It was after I embraced this weakness that I then allowed myself to sleep till one in the afternoon and do nothing but watch movies and drink tea.  Aside from an occasional coughing attack, laziness was actually pretty fun!  I soon began using ‘being sick’ as a reason to not work hard or be responsible.  I quickly traded in my fabulous clothes for one set of flannel pajamas that I would wear 24/7, along with a hairstyle that rats would consider moving into.  I found that in giving in to my ailments, I had given up on who I was in the process. 

That is why today I am writing and going to the gym.  There are days to give yourself time to rest and heal, but there are also days when you need to get off your ass and start living again.  My wish for 2014 is for all of us to simply live each day to our full potential with or without resolutions or plans.  A plan is a good guide to establish a path or a sense of direction but often it is what you do without the plan that really counts.

Eating blackeye peas and painting the left eye
of my Japanese Daruma Doll for luck in 2014.
OK, so I'm still a little superstitious...