When you're just a kid, you want to help. You want to be useful. You want to hang out with your old man. But invariably, you're going to mess up. You're going to drop something, be where you're not wanted, or just plain be in the way. Now that we've grown up, we're starting to hear some of the same things our fathers' said come out of our mouths. While they are usually true, we can't help but think we should try to learn something from the past. We decided to list some of the things we've said and had said to us. Maybe we can all remember what it was like to try to help and get yelled at for it.

1) "Hold the light steady!"

Everett:  For some reason it seems that it is physiologically impossible for anyone under the age of 14 to hold an incandescent flashlight still on the focus of the work being performed by another. Since there really wasn't a headlamp invented at the time (those being reserved for coal miners and such) the job fell to myself. Typically these adventures took place on a sub-zero winter's day when my father thought it to be a great time to work on the well-used motor for our 1973 Jeep Wagoneer, which we affectionately nicknamed "The Safari Beast".

2) "Where is My X?" (feel free to substitute in any tool that you might have borrowed)

Tom: Looking back, it seems my brother and I had a way for borrowing my dad's tools and somehow we would end up leaving them in the woods or out in the yard behind the house. It was one thing when he asked for them and we went to "find" them for him right away, but it was another story when he found them when he was cutting the grass or doing something out in the yard and his tool was all rusty. Um, those situations usually didn't end so well. Even with our run-ins, a lock was never put on the tool box or the garage for that matter, we always had the tools to build our forts, fix our projects, and build stuff.

3) "Hand Me That..."

Everett: My primary job in helping my dad was to be his personal assistant. Largely, this resulted in being a human tool caddy and locating various instruments of self torture and mayhem. Why am I describing the tools as such? Well, when you all but completely renovate a home with nothing more sophisticated than a corded drill and a circular saw (that's right, no cordless tools, table, miter, or reciprocating saws at our house) you get a bit jaded. And compressors and nailers? No way, by golly we nailed every stud by hand - the old fashioned way. Being a tool caddy under these conditions resulted in a lot of work - but it also taught me the trade in a way that was a lot more hands-on than I would have gotten otherwise... or at least I keep telling myself that.

Of course, this invariably leads to:

4) "No, I Said the X, Not the Y!"

Tom: My brother and I quickly learned the names of tools in our garage. Seeing how our dad was a tool and die maker by day and a shade tree mechanic on the weekends, we had a pretty well-stocked garage and he made well and sure that we learned the names of tools. It was often times that as kids we worked as his nurse when he was fixing things. For example, while he was under a car he would yell out, "I need a 3/8-inch drive ratchet with a 6" extension and a 1/2-inch 6 point socket" and we would scurry to find the right pieces and parts to give him what he needed.

5) "Get Away from the Edge!"

Everett: My dad worked as an electrical inspector at the famous Bethlehem Steel. He spent a lot of time high up on cranes fixing things. When you spend that much time up in the air, you get good at it - and you also garner a proclivity for continuing to work up high - which is probably how my Dad ended up installing television antennas as a side job. Of course, he liked to take me with him on jobs. As we'd be walking around 3 story buildings I can still remember his warnings to stay away from the edges of the roof. What made this memorable was that I never EVER got near the edge of the roof that I could remember. In fact, I have a pretty healthy fear of heights that was only (and remains to be) conquered by sheer mind over matter. No, sir, I don't like it - but I'll get up on a roof and get the job done if it calls for it - just don't ask me to enjoy myself.

What are your stories? We know you have them. Hit the discussion link and let us know.