DIY - Do it yourself, ring the man that is.
Whilst at work the other day a colleague of mine mentioned how he was too busy to get time to fix a problem in the house. The problem was fairly simple; a door was catching on his floor. I tried to explain that a little bit of sandpaper applied to the bottom of the door would have solved his woes, but he ventured that he "didn't have time to do those sort of things". I was surprised by his attitude and it got me thinking that he's not alone.
We Irish were, not so long ago, a proud nation of DIY enthusiasts. With increasing new home ownership came an increasing desire for that extra garden shed or play area for the kids in the back garden. Home improvement stores like B&Q and Woodies have seen profits climb through the roof as each newly-sprouted retail park is graced with their presence.
With the sustained growth in the wealth of our population, money is on hand for many. The thought of trudging to the the DIY store to buy the materials and then go home and actually build or put together what we want is a ghastly thought that many no longer haunt themselves with. In short, Ireland's DIY is turning to GSI – "Get Someone In".
Oh the joys of being a rich Irish cub of the prosperous Celtic Tiger. Once we were a nation that took pride in the notion that we built many an English motorway or North American railway line. Today, we take pride in the statement that we no longer need to get the toolbox out. Today we work longer hours than before and spend more time commuting to and from work. We just don’t feel the need to spend an evening or weekend working at home so we GSI.
I ask: why, oh why?
For a nation with such a strong sense of belonging, uniqueness and identity, we are slowly letting our old valued characteristics slip away from us - the increasing trend in GSI being one of many manifestations of this trend. We are gradually morphing into a society more like our neighbours across the Atlantic. Lets hope it doesn’t progress too far.
So bloggers, when you need a new shelf for all those blog awards you're going to carry home tomorrow night, think about lifting a screwdriver before you pick up the phone!
tags: GSI, DIY
Published by Francie.
We Irish were, not so long ago, a proud nation of DIY enthusiasts. With increasing new home ownership came an increasing desire for that extra garden shed or play area for the kids in the back garden. Home improvement stores like B&Q and Woodies have seen profits climb through the roof as each newly-sprouted retail park is graced with their presence.
With the sustained growth in the wealth of our population, money is on hand for many. The thought of trudging to the the DIY store to buy the materials and then go home and actually build or put together what we want is a ghastly thought that many no longer haunt themselves with. In short, Ireland's DIY is turning to GSI – "Get Someone In".
Oh the joys of being a rich Irish cub of the prosperous Celtic Tiger. Once we were a nation that took pride in the notion that we built many an English motorway or North American railway line. Today, we take pride in the statement that we no longer need to get the toolbox out. Today we work longer hours than before and spend more time commuting to and from work. We just don’t feel the need to spend an evening or weekend working at home so we GSI.
I ask: why, oh why?
For a nation with such a strong sense of belonging, uniqueness and identity, we are slowly letting our old valued characteristics slip away from us - the increasing trend in GSI being one of many manifestations of this trend. We are gradually morphing into a society more like our neighbours across the Atlantic. Lets hope it doesn’t progress too far.
So bloggers, when you need a new shelf for all those blog awards you're going to carry home tomorrow night, think about lifting a screwdriver before you pick up the phone!
tags: GSI, DIY
Published by Francie.
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