Is there an official name for the axiom that we all suffer from that
goes something like this.

I have to fix something
before I can fix it I have to fix the tool that fixes the somthing
before I can fix the tool I need to rewire the house to plug in the
welder to fix the tool
before I rewire the house I have to fix the foundation to the
electrical pole
etc etc

It must have an official name and I'm sure I've heard it but for the
life of me I cant remember it!

surftom wrote:
Is there an official name for the axiom that we all suffer from that
goes something like this.

I have to fix something
before I can fix it I have to fix the tool that fixes the somthing
before I can fix the tool I need to rewire the house to plug in the
welder to fix the tool
before I rewire the house I have to fix the foundation to the
electrical pole
etc etc

It must have an official name and I'm sure I've heard it but for the
life of me I cant remember it!


"There's a Hole in the Bucket" - referring to the song?

Gridlock.


--
Fred R
"It doesn't really take all kinds; there just *are* all kinds".
Drop TROU to email.

A thread on this group awhile ago called it "shipwright's syndrome", which I
have used since to describe this problematic and familiar situation.

In a similar vein, my son recently accused me of being the curator of the
Museum of Unfinished Projects...


"surftom" wrote in message
oups.com...
Is there an official name for the axiom that we all suffer from that
goes something like this.

I have to fix something
before I can fix it I have to fix the tool that fixes the somthing
before I can fix the tool I need to rewire the house to plug in the
welder to fix the tool
before I rewire the house I have to fix the foundation to the
electrical pole
etc etc

It must have an official name and I'm sure I've heard it but for the
life of me I cant remember it!

On 30 Mar 2006 17:43:06 -0800, "surftom" wrote:

Is there an official name for the axiom that we all suffer from that
goes something like this.

I have to fix something
before I can fix it I have to fix the tool that fixes the somthing
before I can fix the tool I need to rewire the house to plug in the
welder to fix the tool
before I rewire the house I have to fix the foundation to the
electrical pole
etc etc

It must have an official name and I'm sure I've heard it but for the
life of me I cant remember it!
Chain distraction?
Gerry :-)}
London, Canada

"surftom" wrote in message
oups.com...
Is there an official name for the axiom that we all suffer from that
goes something like this.

I have to fix something
before I can fix it I have to fix the tool that fixes the somthing
before I can fix the tool I need to rewire the house to plug in the
welder to fix the tool
before I rewire the house I have to fix the foundation to the
electrical pole
etc etc

It must have an official name and I'm sure I've heard it but for the
life of me I cant remember it!

Sequential Vortex?

On Fri, 31 Mar 2006 03:46:58 GMT, with neither quill nor qualm, "Emmo"
quickly quoth:

(topposting corrected)

"surftom" wrote in message
roups.com...
Is there an official name for the axiom that we all suffer from that
goes something like this.

I have to fix something
before I can fix it I have to fix the tool that fixes the somthing
before I can fix the tool I need to rewire the house to plug in the
welder to fix the tool
before I rewire the house I have to fix the foundation to the
electrical pole
etc etc

It must have an official name and I'm sure I've heard it but for the
life of me I cant remember it!

I'm sure glad it's not just me who's suffering from this syndrome.
I find that I can't get a project going because I can't find the tools
which are hiding under twenty unfinished projects.

Unrequited hobbying?


A thread on this group awhile ago called it "shipwright's syndrome", which I
have used since to describe this problematic and familiar situation.

In a similar vein, my son recently accused me of being the curator of the
Museum of Unfinished Projects...

It's a good thing he hasn't seen my shop, too. We'd be co-curators.



---=====---
After all else fails, read the instructions.
---=====---
Website Design and Update http://www.diversify.com

I have to fix something
before I can fix it I have to fix the tool that fixes the somthing
before I can fix the tool I need to rewire the house to plug in the
welder to fix the tool
before I rewire the house I have to fix the foundation to the
electrical pole
etc etc

Sometimes called "yak shaving" (because the next thing you know, you'll be
out in the back yard shaving a yak).

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yak_shaving
(or google for other sources)

Larry Jaques wrote:
On Fri, 31 Mar 2006 03:46:58 GMT, with neither quill nor qualm, "Emmo"
quickly quoth:

(topposting corrected)


"surftom" wrote in message
groups.com...

Is there an official name for the axiom that we all suffer from that
goes something like this.

I have to fix something
before I can fix it I have to fix the tool that fixes the somthing
before I can fix the tool I need to rewire the house to plug in the
welder to fix the tool
before I rewire the house I have to fix the foundation to the
electrical pole
etc etc

It must have an official name and I'm sure I've heard it but for the
life of me I cant remember it!


I'm sure glad it's not just me who's suffering from this syndrome.
I find that I can't get a project going because I can't find the tools
which are hiding under twenty unfinished projects.

Unrequited hobbying?



A thread on this group awhile ago called it "shipwright's syndrome", which I
have used since to describe this problematic and familiar situation.

In a similar vein, my son recently accused me of being the curator of the
Museum of Unfinished Projects...


It's a good thing he hasn't seen my shop, too. We'd be co-curators.



---=====---
After all else fails, read the instructions.
---=====---
Website Design and Update http://www.diversify.com

A friend calls this a "Cascading Upgrade".

In his case, He buys a new computer game.

Said game requires a hotter video card.

Hotter video card won't work with current motherboard.

New motherboard won't work with current CPU, Memory, and power supply,
and won't fit in current case.

Pretty soon he's got 5 or 6 hundred into a new machine, so he can play
his (now 2 month old) $40 game.

In article .com,
"surftom" wrote:

Is there an official name for the axiom that we all suffer from that
goes something like this.

I have to fix something
before I can fix it I have to fix the tool that fixes the somthing
before I can fix the tool I need to rewire the house to plug in the
welder to fix the tool
before I rewire the house I have to fix the foundation to the
electrical pole
etc etc

It must have an official name and I'm sure I've heard it but for the
life of me I cant remember it!

TMPTTTD
Twenty-Minute Project That Takes Three Days Syndrome

It's related to the I Just Layed The Damn Thing Down, Dammit! problem in
Tool Location Probability.

surftom wrote in article
.com...
Is there an official name for the axiom that we all suffer from that
goes something like this.

I have to fix something
before I can fix it I have to fix the tool that fixes the somthing
before I can fix the tool I need to rewire the house to plug in the
welder to fix the tool
before I rewire the house I have to fix the foundation to the
electrical pole
etc etc

It must have an official name and I'm sure I've heard it but for the
life of me I cant remember it!



I don't know if there is a formal name for it, but we appear to share the
same house builder/contractor.

Absolutely nothing I do on my house involves only the original task......

My wife would call it "the Ignoramus syndrome".

i

On 30 Mar 2006 17:43:06 -0800, surftom wrote:
Is there an official name for the axiom that we all suffer from that
goes something like this.

I have to fix something
before I can fix it I have to fix the tool that fixes the somthing
before I can fix the tool I need to rewire the house to plug in the
welder to fix the tool
before I rewire the house I have to fix the foundation to the
electrical pole
etc etc

It must have an official name and I'm sure I've heard it but for the
life of me I cant remember it!

On 30 Mar 2006 17:43:06 -0800, surftom wrote:
Is there an official name for the axiom that we all suffer from that
goes something like this.

I have to fix something
before I can fix it I have to fix the tool that fixes the somthing
before I can fix the tool I need to rewire the house to plug in the
welder to fix the tool
etc etc

It must have an official name and I'm sure I've heard it but for the
life of me I cant remember it!

In IT, that's called "cascading dependancies". Also called "SNAFU".

--Ah. That one. When folks ask me what I'm doing in my shop I say I
have to make a thing to make a thing to make a thing.

--
"Steamboat Ed" Haas : Concave, convex, con
Hacking the Trailing Edge! : carne: all is Zen..
www.nmpproducts.com
---Decks a-wash in a sea of words---

On 31 Mar 2006 16:54:40 GMT, steamer wrote:
--Ah. That one. When folks ask me what I'm doing in my shop I say I
have to make a thing to make a thing to make a thing.

For the stuff, like that guy?

Dave "let's play vague...the game where you win stuff..." Hinz

surftom wrote:

Is there an official name for the axiom that we all suffer from that
goes something like this.

I have to fix something
before I can fix it I have to fix the tool that fixes the somthing
before I can fix the tool I need to rewire the house to plug in the
welder to fix the tool
before I rewire the house I have to fix the foundation to the
electrical pole
etc etc

It must have an official name and I'm sure I've heard it but for the
life of me I cant remember it!



Nested Multitasking

"ff" wrote in message
et...
surftom wrote:

Is there an official name for the axiom that we all suffer from that
goes something like this.

I have to fix something
before I can fix it I have to fix the tool that fixes the somthing

It must have an official name and I'm sure I've heard it but for the
life of me I cant remember it!


Nested Multitasking

Nope... It's called "'Liza"; as in: "There's a HOLE in the bucket, dear
'Liza, dear 'Liza; a HOLE in the bucket, dear 'Liza, a HOLE!"

G (Some of you know the rest of the words...)

LLoyd

In article ,
Dave Hinz wrote:

On Fri, 31 Mar 2006 12:50:33 GMT, John Husvar wrote:
In article .com,

It's related to the I Just Layed The Damn Thing Down, Dammit! problem in
Tool Location Probability.

Yeah, speaking of that. How far can a depth micrometer walk on its own?
Because nobody else goes in my shop, and I JUST USED THE DAMN THING.


The one that makes me start doubting my own sanity is I'll be sitting
here tearing something apart, set the tool down to free both hands, and
30 seconds later, reach for the tool, only to find that I'm not able to
locate it for love nor money! Dammit, I haven't moved from my stool
since putting it down, I'm all by my lonesome self, and WHERE THE HELL
DID IT GO!?!?!?!?!?!!??

Then 20 minutes of searching later, give up on the project in disgust,
only to come back the next day and find the tool - Exactly where I put
it down. And to add insult to injury, it almost always turns out to be
in one of those "a blind man couldn't miss seeing it if you put a bucket
over his seeing-eye dog's head and took away his cane" locations.

AUGH!!!!!!

It's gotta be a variation of "CRS" or "old-timer's" disease.... That's
the only thing that makes any sense, other than perhaps, the less likely
"periodic tool-shaped-item blindness", or the even less likely
"teleporting tools" syndrome.

Then again, maybe there really *ARE* such things as
gnomes/elves/brownies?

--
Don Bruder - - If your "From:" address isn't on my whitelist,
or the subject of the message doesn't contain the exact text "PopperAndShadow"
somewhere, any message sent to this address will go in the garbage without my
ever knowing it arrived. Sorry... http://www.sonic.net/~dakidd for more info

In article ,
"Lloyd E. Sponenburgh" wrote:

"ff" wrote in message
et...
surftom wrote:

Is there an official name for the axiom that we all suffer from that
goes something like this.

I have to fix something
before I can fix it I have to fix the tool that fixes the somthing

It must have an official name and I'm sure I've heard it but for the
life of me I cant remember it!


Nested Multitasking

Nope... It's called "'Liza"; as in: "There's a HOLE in the bucket, dear
'Liza, dear 'Liza; a HOLE in the bucket, dear 'Liza, a HOLE!"

G (Some of you know the rest of the words...)



Where shall I stick it, dear' Liza, dear 'Liza?
music grinds to a halt
Trust me... You DON'T want me to answer that one, darling.

--
Don Bruder - - If your "From:" address isn't on my whitelist,
or the subject of the message doesn't contain the exact text "PopperAndShadow"
somewhere, any message sent to this address will go in the garbage without my
ever knowing it arrived. Sorry... http://www.sonic.net/~dakidd for more info

On Fri, 31 Mar 2006 14:25:58 -0500, Bob Chilcoat wrote:
They go into that black hole just to the right of where you're working.
After slipping into the wormhole, they reappear three days later at the same
place but at a different time. This phenomenon can be used to help preserve
fine and essential tools. They end up with much less wear because, having
slipped down the wormhole, they're not as old as the other stuff on the
bench.

Any hints on how to have this technique work on demand, rather than at
the worst possible time?

surftom wrote:

Is there an official name for the axiom that we all suffer from that
goes something like this.

I have to fix something
before I can fix it I have to fix the tool that fixes the somthing
before I can fix the tool I need to rewire the house to plug in the
welder to fix the tool
before I rewire the house I have to fix the foundation to the
electrical pole
etc etc

It must have an official name and I'm sure I've heard it but for the
life of me I cant remember it!



I always called it "you might as well" syndrome. It comes up especially
clearly with plumbing...You go to replace a fitting and find that the
fitting it was connected to needs replacing...and the one that is
connected to....

Koz

Slightly OT, but I once asked an Irishman whether they had an expression for
"manana" (sorry can't be bothered to figure out how to put in the ~) and he
reckoned they didn't have any way of expressing quite that much urgency.

I always called it "you might as well" syndrome. It comes up
especially
clearly with plumbing...
I agree. I don't think any thing mentioned here quite compares to
plumbing problems. Sometimes I think it is cheaper and quicker to
re-plumb the entire house than to replace a 50 cent (used to be 5 cent)
washer.
Bill.

As odd as this seems, I think it's my brother who hides my tools, thing
is, I don't know how he gets into my shop while I am in there but he
slips right past me and takes my tools. Don't get me wrong, he
wouldn't actually keep them, but, it never fails, I replace the one I
lost, come home from the store, use it just enough to make sure I can't
return it, and boom, my brother slides it right back to where I thought
I put it....now, what am I going to do with two do-hickeys, so, of
course, he gets the older one....

My wife just says I am an idiot male and is surprised I can find my own
tallywacker when going to the bathroom (no size jokes needed)

But, back to original topic, I seem to be caught up in the ol "I need
to make that tool so I can make that thingy, don't really plan on
making that thingy, but I'll be damn if, when I decide to, I won't be
able to....that's my monkey.

John

"surftom" wrote in message
oups.com...
Is there an official name for the axiom that we all suffer from that
goes something like this.

I have to fix something
before I can fix it I have to fix the tool that fixes the somthing
before I can fix the tool I need to rewire the house to plug in the
welder to fix the tool
before I rewire the house I have to fix the foundation to the
electrical pole
etc etc

It must have an official name and I'm sure I've heard it but for the
life of me I cant remember it!


In Patrick McManus' book, "The Night the Bear Ate Goombaw", this chapter is
titled "Sequences".

Steve.

In article ,
"Newshound" wrote:

Slightly OT, but I once asked an Irishman whether they had an expression for
"manana" (sorry can't be bothered to figure out how to put in the ~) and he
reckoned they didn't have any way of expressing quite that much urgency.

My brother-in-law, a Texas Mexican whose family was legal before there
_was_ a Texas, USA, told me manana does not mean "tomorrow:" It means:
"Not today, probably not tomorrow, maybe sometime after that."

In article ,
Dave Hinz wrote:

On Fri, 31 Mar 2006 14:25:58 -0500, Bob Chilcoat
wrote:
They go into that black hole just to the right of where you're working.
After slipping into the wormhole, they reappear three days later at the
same
place but at a different time. This phenomenon can be used to help
preserve
fine and essential tools. They end up with much less wear because, having
slipped down the wormhole, they're not as old as the other stuff on the
bench.

Any hints on how to have this technique work on demand, rather than at
the worst possible time?

It's a Law of Natu The probability of a tool going missing is
directly proportional to your need of it and/or the proximity in time of
your laying it down.

BTW: Everybody quit blaming poor Murphy. He didn't invent Murphy's Law,
he just formally described it.

Yes, gnomes, elves, gnurrs,* etc. do exist. I have several living in my
shop. I usually see them at the very extreme corners of my vision as
they're carrying things away.

*The gnurrs come from the woodwork out.

On 31 Mar 2006 17:30:06 -0800, CAMCOMPCO wrote:
As odd as this seems, I think it's my brother who hides my tools, thing
is, I don't know how he gets into my shop while I am in there but he
slips right past me and takes my tools.

Funny you should mention that. I was at my parents house helping with a
plumbing situation the other evening, went into my dad's toolbench, and
there in the drawer...let's just say it was just like looking at my
toolbox. Except of course that it was my tools, in the wrong place.
So, I've figured out where at least some of my handtools have been
going. Can't blame the kids yet, at least not the younger one, he's
under two and doesn't go in the shop alone. Turns out it was one
generation in the _other_ direction.

He doesn't have my depth mic though, because I checked. And I know it's
_RIGHT THERE_.

surftom wrote:
Is there an official name for the axiom that we all suffer from that
goes something like this.

I have to fix something
before I can fix it I have to fix the tool that fixes the somthing
before I can fix the tool I need to rewire the house to plug in the
welder to fix the tool
before I rewire the house I have to fix the foundation to the
electrical pole
etc etc

It must have an official name and I'm sure I've heard it but for the
life of me I cant remember it!

It's called AADS:

Adult Attention Deficit Syndrom

I'm a longtime sufferer, as my wife can attest.