digitalBush

One of the joys of being a man is getting to work with your hands. It's an excuse to tear things apart and build them back again. Nothing makes a man feel more, well manly, than replacing spark plugs or fixing some plumbing. It's just wired into us.

In order to do these manly things that we do, we need tools. It's not always feasible to go out and buy a tool that you might need only a few times in your life. You could go out and rent a tool, but that costs money. The next best thing is to borrow something from your buddy. Before you go out and borrow your friend's chainsaw, please read on.

Take care of the tools. There is nothing worse than letting someone borrow something only to have it returned dirty, scratched up, and rusted. Sure, they are tools, and normal wear is to be expected. At the very least, just clean it up before returning it. I've returned some things in better shape than I found them. It's the least that you should do considering you were getting something for free.

Return the borrowed tools in a timely manner. It really sucks when you go to use a tool that you own, only to realize that your buddy still has it. Where did I put my reciprocating saw? Oh yeah, Fred still has it from when he rebuilt his deck a year ago. Bastard. Don't let this be you. This is a sure fire way to get on my never-borrowing-my-tools-again list. If you need to borrow a tool for an extended period of time (big project!), you had better say so in advance.

If you break a tool, you bought it. Sorry, that's just how it goes. Borrowing tools for free has its risks. If you happen to be the unlucky sucker in possession of a tool when it kicks the bucket (no matter how careful you were with it), then it's your responsibility to fix it or replace it.

Borrowing tools gives sweat equity to the tool lender. The next big project I have that requires help (moving!?), I'll be calling on my friends who I've loaned tools to. Of course, you can get out of this by returning the favor or returning the borrowed tool with a gift (beer, gift card, or other manly gift).

That's all I have on this subject for now. I really like my tools and I worked hard to earn the money to be able to buy them. I expect others to treat my tools with respect.