How handy are you?

Guest Post from Popular Mechanics;

Traditional knowledge of how to build and fix ordinary things around the house might be on the decline.

With our lives becoming more driven by technology, blue-collar labor has been replaced with more white-collar employment, and teenagers are becoming better at programming Web sites than swinging hammers.

Here at PM, where we at least try to do everything, we spent weeks fine-tuning our list of "25 Skills Every Man Should Know," debating over whether certain items were too basic, too challenging or just too obscure.

You can find a full how-to rundown of each one in the October issue of Popular Mechanics, which just hit newsstands. But for now, check out our carefully selected list below, then offer your own arguments and suggestions in the comments section below, or tell us how to perform your must-know skill by writing to us.

The List: How to...
1. Patch a radiator hose - Ya, you have to use electrical tape.
2. Protect your computer - Norton's my friend, and I don't mean Ed Norton.
3. Rescue a boater who has capsized - Done that!
4. Frame a wall - Maybe, haven't actually done that yet.
5. Retouch digital photos - Done that.
6. Back up a trailer - Yes, even without swearing.
7. Build a campfire - Can do by rubbing two sticks together, as long as one is match.
8. Fix a dead outlet - Yes, but that's about how far I will go with electricity.
9. Navigate with a map and compass - Call me Christopher Columbus.
10. Use a torque wrench - Work well under pressure.
11. Sharpen a knife - Yup.
12. Perform CPR - Good old St. John's Ambulance course.
13. Fillet a fish - Yes, but that's the reason I don't go fishing!
14. Maneuver a car out of a skid - Many times
15. Get a car unstuck - Yup, even used an old piece of carpet once.
16. Back up data - Yes
17. Paint a room - Yes, but as long as I can afford it someone else is doing it!
18. Mix concrete - Have done that!
19. Clean a bolt-action rifle - No, don't like guns.
20. Change oil and filter - Many times.
21. Hook up an HDTV - Done that.
22. Bleed brakes - Yes, although I'm usually the one pumping the brakes.
23. Paddle a canoe - Yes, belonged to canoe club as a teen.
24. Fix a bike flat - Could, but won't
25. Extend your wireless network - Don't know.

Allan W Janssen is the author of The Plain Truth About God at www.God-101.com and the blog "Perspective" at http://God-101.blogspot.com