Category Archives: Dude Projects

Dude Approved: An Amazingly Simple DIY Standing Desk

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Standing is muy bueno.

I’ve professed my love for the art of standing: You Should Stand More.

I’ll let you peruse that gem for the details.

I used this beauty at my previous job for a make-shift standing desk…ugly, but it worked:

When I started working from home over a year ago, somehow I fell back into the sitting trap.

I had a desk. And a chair. No sweet boxes laying around…..so I sat. For waaaaay too long.

I looked for a DIY standing desk online from time to time, but never found one that tickled my fancy.

Then I came across A New Twist on the DIY Standing Desk on Man Made. Very sweet. Very easy.

How to: An Amazingly Simple DIY Standing Desk

  1. Buy extra-large shelf brackets and pre-cut wood. Lowes? Home Depot?
  2. Measure height of desk – elbow height, i.e. 44″ for a 5’11” person.
  3. Find stud to attach shelf brackets. Bonus Tip: Best Stud Finder
  4. Attach shelf brackets with wood screws.
  5. Make sure they are level.
  6. Attached wood to shelf brackets.

Bam! Super rad, amazingly simple DIY standing desk.

So awesome we have two at the Dude Casa…

Super sweet DIY standing desk

 

 

Dude’s Handcrafted Tree House – A Fortress of the Mind

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Yesterday, we visited Nina & Rex – aka Mrs. Dude’s parental units. After adding the finishing touches, Rex surprised the kiddos by rolling this beauty out to the water…

As we admired Rex’s fine craftsmanship, Granny reminisced about when Pop – aka Mrs. Dude’s Grandfather – built the original Summer Slide…the inspiration for Rex’s new slide.

Granny recalled how proud Pop was of the plastic and wooden structure. And how he HAD to roll it out to the water as soon as it was complete. Even though it was dark. How Pop would stand back and admire the slide. As if it was the finest piece of craftsmanship he ever laid eyes on.

We admired Rex’s slide in a similar fashion.

There’s something great about building things with your hands. And then admiring what you’ve done.

I was happy to hear I’m part of a lineage of men (stretching back to the dawn of time?) who take the time to admire a job well done.

Because I’ve been admiring this beauty for a couple weeks now…

While Mrs. Dude was flying across the country to photograph Top Gun pilots, I was recruiting my 65 year old dad to lift heavy lumber. And surprise the fam with a tree house.

We crafted the platform in a few hours, and over the last couple weeks I’ve added the extras.

  • Rope ladder
  • Slide – slide’s are expensive, get the Home Depot or Lowe’s version
  • Firemen’s pole – 10 foot electrical conduit from Lowe’s…sweet!
  • Cargo net – Military surplus cargo net for trucks…way cheaper than rope versions and has tie-downs that can go around the tree.

It is pretty much as I envisioned it. Which is to say that like Pop’s slide, this could be the most impressive structure I’ve ever laid eyes on.

Long live handcrafted awesomeness. Even if the mental version is slightly more grandiose than the real thing.

Hofstadter’s Law: Why the Dude’s Projects Always Take Longer Than Planned

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Douglas Hofstadter

Douglas Hofstadter

The Dude has been on a slow blog roll for a couple weeks.

A week or so ago I mentioned that Mrs. Dude has me working a 2nd job as a painter, and the sun room painting project has been consuming my extra time. Hence the slow blog roll.

In that post I said, “We should be able to drop the brushes soon and get back to life without painting.” Nice and vague Dude, good work.

I didn’t anticipate this lack of commitment to a deadline and getting “back to life without painting” would still be dragging on almost two weeks later!

Why do Dude projects always take longer than expected?!

Turns out I have an answer to this question. Hofstadter’s Law.

Hofstadter’s law, conceived by the cognitive scientist Douglas Hofstadter, goes like this: any task you’re planning to complete will always take longer than expected – even when Hofstadter’s law is taken into account.

Yep, sounds like every project the Dude takes on.

Here’s a quick read about Hofstadter’s Law from the Guardian. It’s worth 5 minutes to read (although, I’m sure I’m underestimating how long it will take :)), but I’ll pull out a couple quotes I dig…

  • How to get around Hofstadter’s Law? – The unlikely trick is to plan in less detail: avoid considering the specifics and simply ask yourself how long it’s taken to do roughly similar things before. ‘You’ll get back an answer that sounds hideously long, and clearly reflects no understanding of the special reasons why this task will take less time. This answer is true. Deal with it’
  • Better yet, where possible, avoid planning altogether. Use the “ready, fire, aim” approach, and correct course as you go along.
  • Sometimes, the secret to getting things done is just to do them.

So, as I spend my kid-free Saturday inside painting rather than enjoying the summer sun, I’ll keep Mr. Hofstadter’s Law firmly in my mind to help me remain realistic.

I’m going to finish today – says the painter who will finish sometime next week…maybe. 🙂

PS – The image included here is from an article/interview Hofstadter had in Wired magazine…also worth a quick read. This Hofstadter dude seems like a cool cat.