My Estwing is a nouveau cheeso nylon grip 28 oz. Beat to a pulp over 25 years, the knurling of the head severely de-knurled.
All framers out here, every goddam smacking one, use 28 or 32 oz wood-handled Vaughans. Framing is just way, way, too hard for Paul. Swinging 32 ounces, hefting the Skilsaw overhead and the 2x12 eighteens is too, too hard.
I admit, if no one is listening, that my hammering is piss-ant, and well, "girlish." I resent that adjective, myself; altho for me, it's appropriate. I get by, but I ain't no sinker. Thank god (Jesus was a carpenter) for battery-drivers and screws.
My tendons and bones are, uhm, inadequate. Like I care, anyway. Like I wanna do that. Duh.
Yah, I was about five, and sawing a board in Dad's garage, and this other guy is standing there, and he says, "You saw like a girl." It happened to be a piece of white oak and a god-knows-what handsaw, and I wooda like to seen him get down there and saw it with his razor-sharp dickhead.
But see, I thought, maybe that was good. I mean, I didn't know what sawing "like a girl" was. So I thought maybe he was going to show me how they do it, with less effort, or better. Or just with some novel approach. My mind was open! I had no idea he was just a mother-effing asshole. I had no idea he had nothing better to do with his goddam time than insult people and sexes.
Man that pissed me off. (Quietly.) (Well, I'm still pissed off about it. Jerk. Sleazebag. Chickenshit.)
I couldn't figure it out.
That's how kids get screwed up. From people saying sarcastic mean shit like that.
And it threw my sawing off, pretty good.
So I try not to say things like "I hammer like a girl." But since you swing an Estwing, you're obviously not one.
Just kidding!
There are a lot more girls now, but it's still mostly males out here; I think cuz girls are smarter.
Can I say that? |
