Tools of the Trade
In the middle of January, I took a solo road trip to Death Valley to meet up with Hera for a film project. Hera is a friend I met in Canada who is currently riding her bicycle around the world. After getting to know her story in Banff, I wanted to continue the long-term project while she was on her way down the west coast. I finished up some work on the van with the help of friends, and set off for a couple weeks.
Driving gives me time to think. No screens, distractions, or pauses for hours at a time. I enter a mindset that is often very reflective and creative. I brainstorm ideas for new projects, and have time to reflect on past experiences and how they have impacted myself and those I care most about. This particular day, I began thinking about my father, who passed away a couple of years ago, and how he set himself up with the tools he required for his work as a musician, electrical engineer, and all-around inventor of things. In the beginning, I was thinking about the actual equipment he owned. All of the electronics, computers, speakers, instruments, and cables that lined his work room. Not to mention his tools for woodworking, metal fabrication, vehicles, or just your casual homeowner maintenance. I used to think to myself: “Why does he have so many tools?” I couldn’t understand the specific uses each one provided in different situations. As I think about that now, and how expensive most of that equipment is to obtain, I understand far better than I used to.
I arrived in Ouray for my first night. The ice climbing festival was happening, and I met a couple of buddies for a round at the brewery before we car camped just outside of town. It was the coldest night of the trip, but we woke up early and went to find some ice. I snapped a couple quick photos in the morning before I got back on the road. Watching them climb, and noting all the gear needed to stay safe and warm, reminded me of my father’s tool collection. Some axes are more aggressive than others, which offer the ability to climb different types of terrain. Just like some wrenches are used as robust breakers and others are fine-tuned and precise. The tool should match the job as best as possible.
Later that afternoon I was passing through southern Utah. It was exceptionally beautiful this time of the year. The desert was lightly coated in a frost, which wouldn’t last long in these sunny and clear days. As I drove I thought about the tools I had with me for my current job. My cameras are out-dated, I don’t have many lenses, and my drone doesn’t fly straight anymore. I started feeling a little down at the fact that I don’t have the latest and greatest equipment to work with. I know the filmmakers that I admire use much better equipment, and I don’t have the means to match that quality. I tried my best to switch my thinking from that of a jealous rival, to more of an optimistic opportunist. Since I don’t have the highest quality gear, I’ll have to make up for that through my storytelling abilities and creative cinematography. These are the skills that will transfer with me when I do finally get that camera upgrade I’ve been desiring for so long.
I entered California and drove straight into a huge rain storm. Coming into Death Valley for the first time, I couldn’t see more than thirty feet away because of the thick fog. Hera and her friend Shaun were waiting for me inside the saloon near the visitor center of the park. Hera was ecstatic to see me and to resume the project where we left off in Banff. After a very windy night, we woke up to stunning clear skies that featured snow capped mountains hanging above a vast desert-like valley. There were even some sand dunes far off in the distance. We fought the wind to pack up camp and were off to start filming.
The next two full days we explored, filmed, and camped around the park and surrounding areas. We had to leave the park to fly the drone, but we found some incredible locations just outside the park boundaries.
After an awesome couple days with Hera and Shaun, we parted ways and I headed toward Flagstaff to visit my brother. I was wanting to build a custom roof rack for the van, and my brother was just the guy to do it. A unique combination of outdoorsman, engineer, scientist, woodworker, mechanic, etc., etc.. I like to call him Bengineer, because once you set this guy off on a project he doesn’t stop ‘til it’s done. I showed him some of the products online that I liked, and we quickly drew up plans to custom make our own out of steel square tubing.
I stuck around Flagstaff for a couple more days, because I wanted to spend the most time I could with Ben and his girlfriend, Taylor. Nights spent catching up around the wood-burning stove, learning about metal fabrication during the roof rack build, cooking meals together and celebrating Taylor’s birthday was just the break I needed before heading back home to Denver.
My brother reminds me of my Dad in a lot of ways. They both have that incredible ability to deconstruct something and understand how it works. It’s almost like a superpower that gives you the ability to control all things around you. Ben has a huge amount of tools and workspace, but most of what he owns was picked up for cheap on craigslist and fixed. Yet he never lets that stop him from getting a job done. He uses his resourcefulness and creativity to accomplish whatever the task may be for that day, just like my father did. My Dad was a constant tinkerer, engineer, and thinker. He was patient, thorough, and precise. I realize now that those are the tools you can’t walk into the hardware store and pay for. Those are the attributes that allow you to have less but use it for more.
My camera isn’t the highest resolution, and Ben’s chop saw didn’t cut the straightest, but I choose not to let that stop me. It’s the experience that really counts, and now if I ever do acquire the latest and greatest tools I’ll have the skill and patience to take full advantage. My Dad passed on far more than screwdrivers and wrenches, he gave me insight on how to take control of your own life and make it what you want.