Reservations aside, the mythic frontier entices with its ideal of self-sufficiency and resourcefulness, the do it yourself spirit. In today's ease of abundance and planned obsolescence I think it is especially appealing for the Modern Man to fix something himself, with no clear directions, and little sense of knowing what he is doing. (The same may go for the Modern Woman.)
And in a practical sense, as everyday earth care, maintenance and do-it-yourself projects can mitigate the embedded costs of purchasing a new product.
1. A needle, thread and duct tape will extend the life of most any product.
2. Go ahead and try to repair/maintain your bicycle yourself. With its simplicity of design, you are not likely to make it worse.
3. Instead of buying new, go to the thrift shop to see what sorts of treasures you may be able to restore.
4. The Sierra Club offers all sorts of fun DIY projects for repurposing your stuff.
5. Take pride in making your electronics last far beyond their "relevance." Old School is cool. Besides, on the frontier, you can't just hop online and order up an iGadget 10 to replace your iGadget 9.
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