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#1
07-03-2006, 10:35 PM
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Miscellaneous Life Skills
The stick shift thread prompted this in that I was a little surprised how many people have never had the chance to learn how to drive a manual transmission. That is a skill that has helped me sometimes and doesn't go away. I have been thinking of this since we have a young kid and there are some things he needs to learn to handle before going off in the big old world. Some things I want him to learn (and I can't do them all) And I left off "women" since that is impossible to figure out. These are in no order of importance either. And academics are separate, although a couple of skills are more academic than others.
1. Stick shift. 1a. Skilled driving, i.e. defensive and/or evasive driving skills 2. Some cooking skills. 3. Land navigation skills urban and rural. 4. 1 or 2 foreign languages. 5. Pistol. 6. Shotgun. 7. Rifle. 8. A somewhat practical martial art 9. Golf 10. Some basic fix-it skills. 11. Skiing 12. Swimming 13. Travel skills, from the above-mentioned map reading to packing to having some sense about how to act and do things in various places. 14. Chess Others you can think of? I am sure there are things we take for granted that maybe we shouldn't or should think about teaching our kids. 
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#2
07-03-2006, 10:53 PM
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Re: Miscellaneous Life Skills
1. Stick shift. 1a. Skilled driving, i.e. defensive and/or evasive driving skills 2. Some cooking skills. 3. Basic survival skills 3a. Land navigation skills urban and rural. 3b. How to use a compass 3c. What to do if you get lost 3d. How to swim 3e. How to survive in the wilderness 4. Exposure to other cultures 4a. Learn 1 or 2 foreign languages. 4b. Visit a few countries on at least two other continents 5. Pistol. 6. Shotgun. 7. Rifle. 8. A somewhat practical martial art 9. Golf 10. Mechanical skills 10a. Some basic fix-it skills 10b. Basic understanding and use of common hand tools 10c. Basic understanding of common mechanical items (engines, motors, etc) 11. Skiing 12. see #3 (was: Swimming) 13. Travel skills, from the above-mentioned map reading to packing to having some sense about how to act and do things in various places. 14. Chess 15. Some courses in basic behavioral psychology 16. Critical thinking / Problem solving skills
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#3
07-05-2006, 07:02 PM
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Re: Miscellaneous Life Skills
That's a very interesting list. It does seem a bit survival-oriented. I'll list some skills that I either value or want to learn in my lifetime. I think my focus is a bit more on "tinkering," some of this borders on academic also, I'm not quite sure what you mean by that.
1. Mechanical skills. Understanding everything from car engines to clocks. The basic parts of machines. Boats, airplanes, trains, guns, etc. 2. Electronic skills. Understand home appliances and the like. 3. Computer skills. Real facility here, beyond what you can learn in school. Learn about hardware, how to build a PC, basic software interactions and common interface features, basic programming (at least to the level of conditional loops). 4. Domestic skills. Basic plumbing, construction, electrical systems. 5. Sewing and fabric care. 6. Video games! (Does that count?) 7. Know how to fly and land a small aircraft. 8. Identify flora and fauna in different wilderness environments. 9. Finance. 10. Emergency health care. Also rescue techniques such as lifeguard techniques, etc. 11. Rock climbing (at least a bit, maybe 5.10). Okay, I think I'm done for now.
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#5
07-05-2006, 07:41 PM
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Re: Miscellaneous Life Skills
[ QUOTE ]
5. Pistol. 6. Shotgun. 7. Rifle. [/ QUOTE ] really? I need to know all 3? I'm pretty sure I've never even seen a gun, save for on a policeman or in a store.
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#7
07-05-2006, 08:23 PM
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Re: Miscellaneous Life Skills
Here are the ones I don't understand.
Stick shift. - Automatic transmissions are so common. What's the point? I'll admit I can't drive a manual, and wish I could, so I can see your point in teaching him that. If you're like me, the bi-annual occurence of being called on to drive a stick isn't a big enough deal to merit spending the time to figure it out. I get laughed at, but that's no biggie. The guns - From a self-defense perspective, they're pretty self-explanatory, like Dom said. What else is there? Skiing - Snow or water? Either way, why?
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#9
07-05-2006, 10:39 PM
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Re: Miscellaneous Life Skills
[ QUOTE ]
why the hell would I need to know how to shoot a shotgun? Plus, if the situation arose where I'd have to use one, it's a weapon that's pretty much self-explanatory. [/ QUOTE ] Shotgun is not as self explanatory as you think, although for defense it is easier to hit somewhere in the vicinity than with others. Shotgun is a good skill like golf, because being able to shoot in the field could come in handy in some social situations. Aside from defense and just putting buckshot on a target at close range, wingshooting is a good hand-eye skill and requires some self discipline and body awareness. Just a good thing to learn IMO. Miscellaneous, but good. I am not a good shot with a shotgun but have done a little of it. I may do some more in the future or may not.
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#10
07-05-2006, 10:41 PM
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Re: Miscellaneous Life Skills
[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ] 5. Pistol. 6. Shotgun. 7. Rifle. [/ QUOTE ] really? I need to know all 3? I'm pretty sure I've never even seen a gun, save for on a policeman or in a store. [/ QUOTE ] I think all three are good, sometimes for different reasons. Being able to handle any of them safely is good for safety's sake IMO.
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