Why I Like Working in Miniature So Much

Fair warning... this is not your usual blog from me...

I am reminded today WHY I like working in miniature so much. I'm about to build a deck with my daughter at her house.

Yesterday, I tore down the old back porch from her house. The wood was quite weathered, and many of the screws were hard to remove. I finally took my power saw and started cutting. What I couldn't tear apart with the saw, a sledge hammer managed the rest. I was down to the last upright post, which was hanging on by a few strands of wood. So, I took my sledge hammer and gave it a whack! That did it! The 8 foot tall 4x4 careened over to its side -- right into my daughter's 3' x7' plate glass window! They tell me it will cost a little over $400 to fix it....

Next, I called the rental supply to line up a power post-hole digger (an auger). The guy at the rental place said, "It works best with these power augers for the two people running it to be the same size." (I'm 6'4". My daughter is 5'2".) "Otherwise," he said, "the shorter person really takes the brunt of the lifting and running of the digger." My daughter is all of about 110 lbs. I'm a string-bean, too. The auger weighs 80 lbs. This could be a very interesting day.

So, here's my list of why I like building miniatures as opposed to full-size stuff...as if I really need to tell you, dear readers!

• No building permits required. 
• No heavy lifting (unless you have to move a dollhouse...)
• No power drills to maintain and charge.
• No blisters.
• No heavy-duty sweating. 
• No mud on your shoes after building a mini deck.
• No sunburn or mosquito bites (unless you really want to work on your mini on your patio or deck). 
• The framing boards on a dollhouse deck weigh less than an ounce for each 12' length.
• No back-ache (unless I bend over my minis at my workbench for extended hours at a time).
• I would also include "no building inspectors", but I have to admit that if I build a mini, I usually want to show it off to others, and every time I do that, there are the critics and critical eyed people who give me their two cents worth about what is right or not right with my project!