I usually fail to winterize my lawn mower by draining the gasoline from the tank before the cold hits. In the spring when the grass is growing again I find myself unclamping the hose and draining the tank of spoiled gasoline. I make my usual trip to the gas station and fill up one of those red portable gas containers. I know I should switch to electric, but the gas mower still works and to my neighbor's chagrin I don't use it very often. I read that I can use up freeze exposed gas in my passenger vehicle since it has a larger engine then a lawn mower. Doing this requires a trip out to the garage and digging up one of those red canteens and giving my Prius a sip.
Its funny how garages are associated with masculinity. My dad who is a master of 2x4 construction has built himself an office in his garage completely out of this material. Its a place where he feels most comfortable. I can't say I would ever put an office in a garage, but I do like to have my tools organized so when something comes up that needs to be repaired I can do so without spending half my time looking for the right tool.
When I was 23 and seeking to gain admission into the college of engineering I wrote an essay about hammer hooks on my son's pants. My son was only 3 years old and yet many of the tiny pants that were marketed towards his age group had hammer hooks on them. I was 23 and had rarely found a pair of pants in the women's section with decent pockets let alone a tool storage component on them.
My young self questioned this in that essay. Who had failed at recruiting me into engineering sooner? Was it my lack of savvy or was it a larger failing of society to not instill in me the perceived tool belt needed to pursue the degree? Criticism sometimes pays off.
Engineering does teach that problem solving does require tools. Skills and techniques are referred to something you "put it in the toolbox". The problem is girls are not marketed pants with hammer hooks or tonka trucks; let alone tool boxes. Early in this profession as a women, I probably spent as much time crafting the proverbial tool box as I have the tools. That's a disadvantage when it comes to participation and competition with peers who may have grown up with pants with hammer hooks and by extension the pursuit of both tangible and intangible tools.
Yet, tools or tool boxes alone or not enough to solve problems. The person wielding the tools has to have the fortitude and resilience to be able to keep at a problem until it is deconstructed and redesigned. Fortitude and resilience are traits that have no gender and not anything that can be purchased. People at a disadvantage will overcome a lack of resources with an overabundance of tenacity.
Complex problem solving requires complex problem solvers. As we fund civil infrastructure by the billions, recruitment of designers is crucial to paving the path forward. We need people with tool boxes, tools, and the tenacity to use them. Hopefully, that path is paved with a diverse work force, recycled materials, pervious pavement, solar charging stations, and a generous amount of vegetated oases. Unfortunately, we are behind the 8 ball as that type of recruitment and training takes years. There's no time to waste to get hammers in the hands of girls and other non-traditional candidates for engineering degrees.
