The full phrase is: “A jack of all trades is a master of none, but oftentimes better than a master of one.” The idiom was used by Robert Greene in his 1592 booklet “Greene’s Groats-Worth of Wit” where he refers to William Shakespeare with this idiom. It was a compliment.
Sometimes, the outcome of a new trade has not the quality intended
Let’s start from the beginning. As introverts me and my partner favor privacy more than anything else. So, the idea of sleeping and living in a car that readily allows a good view into its inside is quite appalling. Imagine people pressing their faces against the window to get a better peek. I had that happening before. Granted they do it out of curiosity and not for some other unfathomable motive. Anyway, it’s horrible to us!
The first thought was to put up curtains. We might do that eventually, but I want to discourage people from the beginning to take a closer look. One solution jumped right out of various options: to attach tint film to the windows.
Well, I never did this kind of work before. So, I got on the internet and started researching.
To do flat windows as at the side of the car seemed kind of easy. And it was. The work turned out really professional looking. And as expected, the tinted window allowed amost no view inside. It made a huge difference compared to before. In the left picture below you can see the yellow frame of the back door right through the window. With tint film in the right picture the frame is barely visible. You see mostly the reflection of the old house in the alleyway I had to retreat to because of wind. And wind isn’t in the least helpful when working with thin sheets of film.
In the end Five up! Goal achieved! I’m quite happy with the result.
The real challenge was the curved pane of the back window
At the back window, the tint film had to be fitted to the curvature of the glass with the aid of a hot air gun. Here, craft turned into artwork: too much heat burns holes, not enough heat warps the film. Moreover, I found two methods to coat the glass for this proceedure. The first method uses talcum the second method uses a thin layer of soap. I chose the talcum method – and what a nerve wrecking mess it was!
Anyway, I guess I finished the project on some sort of an apprentice’s level. I got kind of a mixed result.
The main goal was achieved: People can’t peep inside the car anymore. True. However, whitish bubbles appear in the window when looking from the outside that I couldn’t squeeze out. That added some disappointment.
Now I’m kind of pondering: shall I remove the tint film and redo it? Upon repetition, I might get better in this trade. However, I ask myself if I will really get a more satisfying result next time.
Or shall I just leave it as it is? Like good enough.
What do you think I should do?
Am I too much of a German with this question …
