Dexterity, Bruises, and Pride in Vehicle Graphics Done Well

There’s a curious ease to ordinary tasks like opening a can of soda, tying shoelaces, or nav­i­gat­ing a smart phone — effort­less motion! A beautiful com­bi­na­tion of dexterity and muscle memory that’s often unnoticed. Our hands and fingers are won­der­fully capable. They feel, apply pressure, generate leverage, multi-task, syn­chro­nize, and carry out a range of actions the most advanced robotic tech­nol­ogy can only shake a clumsy hydraulic fist at.

I’ve always enjoyed activ­i­ties and jobs that require the hands and mind to work in tandem. There’s sat­is­fac­tion to the immediacy of working through a problem and seeing the results in real time. In my first post, I mentioned a lag between my under­stand­ing of the decal process and my inability to perform the required hand skills. As I’ve continued learning the ins and outs of com­mer­cial graphics instal­la­tion with TKO, I’ve found that my hands are becoming less awkward and more agile.

Getting vinyl to stick to a surface in a way that will hold up to the elements and look pro­fes­sional takes a lot of cleaning, heating, pulling, tearing, cutting, brushing, and wiping. All of this takes a toll on the hands …well, at least my hands. Every day on the job brings a thousand tiny abuses — cuts, burns, scrapes, and gouges. My wrists crack, knuckles pop, and palms ache, but there’s an element of pride that emerges as callouses form and fingers strengthen.

I’m amazed when I think about the evolution my hands have undergone in just six weeks of work. These days, we hear a lot about the rapid pro­gres­sion of tech­nol­ogy. Today’s new version is tomorrow’s outdated model! In the past 100 years, automa­tion has driven indus­tries to unpar­al­leled heights, but there are still many jobs that machines stink at. For­tu­nately, we humans have a knack for express­ing spon­ta­neous ingenuity through our hands, making us well suited for detail-oriented work with unpre­dictable variables …like installing graphics!