My fun, don't spoil it

On the weekend I was up at the cottage.  The tradition is that on the May long weekend we go up there and do all the setup - put the dock in, set up the swimming raft, etc.  The dock is always the biggest part of the project as we have to haul the board sections to the dock once we have lifted the metal dock structure into place.  Normally the metal structure is moved with three or four people as it is quite heavy.  Last year I wanted to try lifting it myself but everybody refused to let me attempt it and insisted on helping.

This year though I got em.

All the other adults left to go to the farmer's market early Saturday morning, and as soon as they closed the door I ran to Pinkie Pie and told her that I was going to do the whole dock by myself.  I knew that the others would try to help me if they knew I was doing it, so I deputized her as my lookout so I would have warning if they returned from shopping.

She LOVED this.  She knows that her daddy is a big fan of doing difficult things by himself just for fun, and tricking other people out of helping me was just her jam.

I rushed to get changed and get to work.  Lifting the metal structure was quite a challenge, but I was able to get right under the centre of it and hoist it up.  It was pretty close to my maximum weight allowance but not quite there so I carefully walked it out to the lake and dragged it to the end of the dock.  Being as I was solo it was more difficult that usual to set it exactly in place but eventually I just dumped it in the water, changed positions, and got it to work.

By the time the others returned I had managed to fix the metal in place, put all the wooden sections down, and do the extra bits required to finish the job up properly.

Wendy was quite surprised to see it done, but after a moment's reflection realized that she should absolutely have expected this.

My inlaws... were baffled.  They couldn't quite see why exactly I would lift a heavy, enormous object over my head just to prove that I could do it without anybody helping.  Wouldn't it be safer and easier to wait for help?

Of course it would be safer and easier!

But since when has safe and easy been as fun as pushing yourself to your limits?  Never, that's when.  Maybe lifting for a few years has changed me, I am not sure.  But now I have this intense desire to try to do really difficult things that my strength can barely managed.  I spend so much time hoisting things for no reason that an opportunity to test my abilities in a setting where the work is actually useful feels wonderful.

I feel so happy that I tricked people out of helping me with a task.  I do not always make sense, it would appear.