After some promises made by the property owner regarding the roof, we are full speed ahead on the buildout again. The attempts to patch things only created more leaks from walking around up there. Flat roofs: cannot recommend.

Loaded up on conduit, wire and related doodads this past week. Obviously working on electrical this week and it should be completed next week. Still working to get 220v but we can live with 110v for the moment.

We have been given a sweet, substantial steel table base with 6” industrial casters. I’ve got a line on a nice steel top and have begun trolling for steel stock for various workspace buildout. Going to put the new MIG welder to use next week.

Currently looking to acquire:

1. Any quality steel stock for free (will haul off)
2. Acetylene torch set
3. MIG shield gas set (Argon/CO2)
4. Plasma cutter

Anyone out there know roofs? Our space is tar and paper on top of corrugated steel (very strong stuff). Problem is, we are struggling with leaks. And the corrugated nature of the steel causes leaks to be hard to find as they run to the sides of the walls. The property owner has been methodically trying to fix this.

Don’t get me wrong. I really like the property owner at our new space but it is taking forever to get the roof to stop leaking.

Fortunately this is only an issue in one of the three targeted rooms but it happens to be the metalshop and the ‘middle’ room that should be of great focus for us and our future activities.

Thanks for the vent time. Given all this we are moving forward with painting and planning electrical given the weather cooperates. Running electrical and roof leaks do not mix. Big thanks to the core buildout team who remain a stealthy crew of ninjas.

A hackerspace according to the all knowing Wikipedia.org is found to be:

A hackerspace or hackspace (also referred to as a hacklab, makerspace or creative space) is a location where people with common interests, often in computers, technology, science, digital or electronic art (but also in many other realms) can meet, socialise and/or collaborate.

For the purposes of Chatt*lab and our content, we will use makerspace most of the time simply for the reason that it is more palatable to a public that has been led astray on the term hacker. A hacker is someone who simply tinkers with any system and has nothing to do with illegal activity, thank you news media and Hollywood.

Whether we like it or not, the way the community perceives us is important to our existence and even success.

Oh yeah, and what is the * about in the name? If you know grep you know the faithful asterisk is a wildcard character. It is an indication within the logo that it is a lab for many purposes i.e. you get to fill in the *! (If you don’t know grep then you should get a grip.)

We have secured some amazing space on St. Elmo Avenue at the base of Lookout Mountain. We are in the process of building it out. A lot of folks are asking how they can help and this is so inspiring. Thank you so much!

As they say timing is everything and it really applies to this. There are a number of things that need to happen with the buildout and in a specific order. I promise to tap each person who as offered their time and labor when the time is right.

Currently we are struggling with some Maslow’s Hierarchy of Need issues; yes, we have leaks in the roof. The current path to happiness includes the property owner who is attempting to patch the roof. Tonight Trevor and I primed 99% of the metalshop aka room #2 even with the leaks from the rain.

It is incredible what a little paint can do to brighten a room. And it is amazing what a couple of leaks can do to crush that instantly! However, we are not dissuaded in the least. This will get fixed over the next few weeks. We will keep our chins up and work around it to keep our momentum then hit hyperdrive once dry.

A makerspace in Chattanooga, Tennessee? Seems like the natural thing given the tradition of industry, technology and manufacturing here in what was termed ‘The Dynamo of the South’ before that now larger city just to the down the road from here in Georgia, once called Terminus, found its legs in the 1970s and blossomed into Atlanta.

‘What in tarnation is a makerspace?’ you ask. The simple answer is remember shop class? If you do, then you most likely understand the soul of the maker movement before you found this site. If you understand this, then you might consider joining us on a path that strives to connect us to that spirit of making.

If not, you are most likely born after 1975, and by the time you were in middle or high school, had missed a real opportunity to broaden your horizons and understanding of the physical world in which you exist. Up until this point, Neo, perhaps your own self identity has been somehow less than given you don’t really know what you missed. This experience that you long for without knowing its name was delivered through what was commonly called Shop Class, or Home Economics.

Back in these ancient times, taking “shop” or “home ec” (more formally known as Industrial Arts) was a normal part of the curriculum. It was as natural, even expected, as taking gym (more formally known as Physical Education). For me, 8th grade was this rite of passage. Since that time, somehow the powers that be have milked every last kick ass thing out of public education, and shop was one of the first to disappear. For me it is like the pain from a phantom limb for our culture.

Perhaps we can we pass the blame to the lawyers? Was it liability insurance? The occasional lathe tool cartwheeling across the work area at 150mph and embedding itself in the opposing concrete wall? The molten aluminum sand casting that someone grabbed before dunking in the pail of water?

No matter the reasons for the demise, shop represented a connection to something I feel many are now seeking either to feel again or for the first time. A real connection to making something with your own two hands. And furthermore, a real connection to our past as Americans, as inventors and makers.

Oversimplified guesswork on my part? Perhaps. But consider when you combine this with the ongoing blackboxing of things that we used to be able to fix ourselves (opened the hood of your car lately?), the sunsetting of NASA as a force for inspiration for millions, and an ever larger government that tells us it can do everything for us. Even the gravity of the American life, a life of luxury compared to the rest of the world, affords us to take our broken stuff to others that do that sort of thing for a living; or for the worst, we toss it into the landfill and just buy another.

In my mind, all of these things have contributed to the maker movement. The makerspace (the kinder, gentler pseudonym for hackerspace) has become very popular in the last 10 years, reaching a fever pitch in the last few. This is why you are here, Neo.

The reality is this valuable part of our public education was not thrown out in other places in the world. Yes, in other countries not only does this sort of practical education exist but it has evolved with the times. And, frankly, from a competitive perspective they are eating our lunch in STEM (Science Technology Math & Engineering) for the foreseeable future.

In these places, shop class has not been extinguished but has evolved into Design and Technology courses that explore design process including current trends exploring sustainability, advanced materials and new technologies. They have morphed Home Economics into Nutrition and Food Sciences exploring localized food sources, with many schools having their own gardens and agricultural experiment facilities.

Does this richness sound enticing? Did you experience this first hand? Will your child, your future children, benefit from such a diverse playground? Not by default, unless you move to Australia or one of the other countries that honor this multi-disciplinary approach to education.

I don’t know about you but this is something I think mine deserve. So they don’t lose the connection to the world around them. So they don’t lose the connection to our American culture and our history as inventors. So they do not miss an opportunity to have a life that is rich and rewarding. So they don’t just become mere consumers.

My twins at a bit over 3 years old sit here in front of me furiously playing with a set of Tinker Toys that we happened upon at a great store in Atlanta this weekend. I saw these and thought ‘yes!’ and gladly plopped down some hard earned cash. They have been playing with these simple toys for hours this morning, creating ‘shooters’ and a variety of vehicles both recognizable and not; and just art. This is in our DNA.

We at Chatt*lab, along with millions of others, are on a search for the lost spirit that we found in the past in shop class; we are on a journey to find our inner maker and inventor that is in our DNA that many have forgotten. We are about rediscovering and expressing this DNA in our communities locally, nationally and globally.

Here in Chattanooga, we are joining our fellow makers in Nashville, Memphis, Knoxville, Huntsville and Atlanta. We are going to create an amazing toybox full of all sorts of “Tinker Toys” and offer it to our community for the price of a gym membership. Want to help? Want to get involved and rediscover your long lost inventor DNA? Then subscribe to this page for updates and reach out and let us hear from you.