I really like this Paul, a very creative solution, though I do like I_jonez suggestion of polyurethane too and not having access to a printer this would be the route I would choose. I used to work with polyurethane and made a few bits for my bikes ( chain rollers and such ) so easy to work with, if I was still there now I would be pumpin out uprated engine mounts and suspension bushes like no tomorrow haha.
Just as an aside, referring to your posts regarding your personal life, I think it is very brave of you to bare your soul like this on here, and please don't think that you are "strange/ill/something wrong" or whatever. We are all unique and different, there is no "standard" to live up to ( though various media might make you think otherwise ) we are who we are, and we shouldn't be made to feel like we need to change or fit in.
You mentioned your friends saying socially you converse too analytically, mechanically ect. This is who you are Paul, it is something you are very passionate about, maybe instead of trying to change you, you need to change your friends ( though I am sure they think they are just trying to help, which is nice ) I had to re-locate to the other side of the world to find what I was looking for ( at 32yold ) I am 50 now and I couldn't be happier.
As someone once said to me, "embrace the fear", not an easy thing to do I admit, but you know that saying "what doesn't kill us, makes us stronger" ? ..........it's TRUE.
And just finally, one piece of hope I can give you from my personal experience, as we get older things calm down, priorities change, life simplifies, at the end of the day the ONLY important thing is that you, and the people you care about, are healthy and happy. All the money,possessions,status in the world don't mean ####, we all go out the same way. Live for today for tomorrow is promised to no man ( I work in a hospital now, and see this all the time )
I hope this helps Paul, ( though I feel my post has ended on a kind of downer ) but life, and YOUR time here is all that really matters, enjoy it
thanks for ur awesome wise words yorkiesteve, so grateful for everyones loving support here
aye it's quite a leap for me to post personal stuff here but I think it's cos I invested so much time & effort into this blog with a supportive friendly community and being convenient, it's become my only safe channel of output.
it's turned from a project car blog into a blog/personal life diary but not as public shouting to close friends/family as say FB, even though anyone can visit this forum.
I've always been this silly odd little sausage since childhood
imho being this silly strange daft behaviour back during school was I suppose a sort of defense mechanism to help freak away the threat of bullies since I obviously stand out.
but with school/college out the way, this behaviour is both a creative advantage but also a curse in trying to fit in. I saw everyone around me progressing in life with companions, homes, work, kids, fun holiday etc as the media suggested as normal and I desired that fantasy dream, yet here I am currently stuck ground bottom at 34 with none of that. therefore makes sense for me to question myself on what did I do wrong, or am I somehow psychologically broken (autistic, anxiety disorder, depression?) or not destined for any of that?
and this builds anxiety, especially with peer pressure & social expectations of getting job & gf/married/kids by 40/50 before our prime time & energy runs out.
it's an old fasioned outlook from the older generations pov tbh and the brain plays a tug war battle between:
A - panicing to fulfil this normal dream (to satisfy the biological urges & family/friends expectation) before it's too late or
B - accept my fate that it's just a mental conditioning pipe dream I'm not meant for and fook all this human pro-creation crap, and just do what "I" desire/dream (become a design engineer/inventor to develop & realise my many ideas to make a better faster innovative race car or think of innovative ideas to help save the world for humanity).
yea this analytical serious/professional technical language of mine is just a part of how I dedicated & cocooned most my life within this scientific, professional, technological world, meeting business ppl etc with almost zero social life. therefore the "normal" social gatherings & local casual subtle slang talk seems quite alien-world to me and requires huge mental effort/stress to adapt into.
I do sometimes question who my real supportive friends are. I've known my close local m8s since school/college, we have afew things in common over all these yrs and they're responsible for getting me out the house every weekend to the pub for normal drink/talk (otherwise I'd stay at home forever) but their way of dealing with situations is via joking, banter, talking the micky, critising my passions (being fan of mariah & my crazy micra), saying "ahh I'm only joking with ya". I suppose this is the norm of how lads bond but I don't function like that, I'm mostly serious, wanna help, with hint of sillyness. I don't often get sarcasm and at times the jokes/critisism may feel personal/offensive but I deal with it by letting it slide, ignore or admit defeat or laugh it off to defuse/move it on.
wouldn't have considered moving to another country, that's way outside my comfort zone but it's now that I'm trying to combat my anxiety fears first before such extreme measures. baby steps.
yeah true that what doesnt kill u makes u stronger/wiser. surviving from almost completely being taken advantage of by my last job and surviving depression from being dumped/rejected by several girls last yr has made me more aware that no matter how much we try to care for ppl, ppl outside actually really dont care about us and should just care/fend for ourselves instead.
I understand that our human life on earth is only brief and have limited time to contribute our efforts towards sustaining the human race / our family generations or improving our world environment to help sustain future life.
indeed money & materials don't really bring happiness & fulfilment in our short lives (they're just made up entities as a catalyst to induce change, "stirring the milky coffee" to make life interesting/adventurous). we are born to be loved, socially connect with other minds, to dream, experience & share our passions, to have purpose (pass on our legend like a relay race).
this has all turned into abit of philosophy talk ey?
