I'm a fixer, always have been, ingrained by my Pop who was brought up through the Great Depression and served in WWII. Nothing was thrown away or replaced, rather reused in some way or FIXED. That was the mentality back then and how I was brought up.
Grandpa was a radio repairman going way back....pre WWII. The family had a 30's "tube" radio in the kitchen ...right up into the late 70's when my Mom moved to Florida. Pop fixed it, usually replacing tubes, sometimes needing to get the soldering gun out. I've still got his 100W Archer gun (old early store brand of Radio Shack) Damn thing STILL WORKS! I use it often, its an animal (powerful)
"Fix it" is in my DNA.
We had an old clothes dryer...came with the house...I fixed maybe 2-3 times in a 10 year period...finally the heating element failed....I said can do..an easy fix....my wife FREAKED, demanded a new unit.....just for the sake of having a NEW ONE. I reluctantly capitulated.
Yup, the modern "throw away" mentality Jack Ryan references absolutely repulses me.
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