Since it is the holiday season I know a lot of you will be travelling. With winter arriving Thursday, I wouldn't be surprised if on your trip home you hit snow. In any case I thought I would share a "MacGyver"-type moment I had while traveling this summer on a plane. This summer I traveled to Hawaii and on my way home I had some delays because of Hurricane Irene. I ended up staying in Hawaii for a week longer than I was supposed to (I mean who doesn’t want to stay in Hawaii for an extra week? But I did have to get home and back to reality). I was supposed to be back on a Monday, but due to …

[About this column: Stoneham resident and former HGTV "All American Handyman" contestant Allison Oropallo discusses home improvement projects. Check out her column on Wednesdays.] I was doing a variety of work for a friend last year – all sorts of odd jobs like installing a new GFI, fixing a porch, painting, hanging curtains, fixing blinds, and installing a new medicine cabinet. After completing all the general odd jobs, I went back to take a look at the smaller issues around the house to see if I could do anything else for my friend, who we'll call "Mallory." She walked me around the house …

Have you ever thought about life through a dog’s eye? I did recently. I have a Bassett Hound and he is what I call a low rider—a full-size body with legs as long as my hand. He isn't athletic, so he can't just jump up on high things, and will never be able to see from a different point of view. He lives down where I’m sure the air smells of feet and dust. Windows aren't made so dogs can see the outdoors, except for Great Danes. My Basset Hound stands on his short hind legs with his front legs resting on the windowsill just to get a glimpse of the outside world. He has done this quite a bit …

It’s that time of year again. You know, that time when most people extend their hearts out in some shape or form to others. Whether it is through gifts or acts of kindness, this time of year seems to open people’s hearts. And the awesome thing about the holidays is the way everyone feels: It doesn’t matter if you do the giving or receiving, caring always feels good. This year I have a challenge for you. If you are fairly handy or have ambitions to be handy, I challenge you to make gifts rather than buy them. I think we can all agree that there is something indescribable about putting your own…

Have you ever seen the movie “Pay It Forward?” If you haven't, you should check it out. And if you have seen the movie, I think you know where this is going. Ottoson Middle School is teaming up with nonprofit Paint it Forward to make the Technology Education classrooms optimal learning environments for Arlington's students. Paint it Forward takes classrooms and transforms them from white-walled cluttered spaces to warm, inviting, organized environments where kids love to go and learn. I thought we did a pretty decent job with what we had done with our generous donations. But after meeting …

After countless hours of work, sweat, designing, and teamwork, Ottoson Middle School technology engineering students finished renovating our room. It looks great and we can now fit everyone in the room. The students were given the chance to stay after school to work on the room. And even though no grades were given for this, students decided to help because they wanted to. They were a pleasure to work with and I am very thankful for their efforts. Students cooperated with each other and helped each other when in need. Those who weren’t directly involved with the project were very impressed …

Last week, I asked the community for help with one of my classrooms. The technology department at Ottoson Middle School has two classrooms: a woodshop and an old computer lab with a very outdated carpet and a 35-year-old paint job. There are no windows in either room, and this year our class sizes increased quite a bit. When my students are working on projects, they have very little space to work. Because my class is based on hands-on learning, space is a necessity. You might be asking, "Okay so what are you doing about it?" My answer: a classroom renovation. I plan for this renovation to …

This weekend I built garage shelving for a homeowner in New Hampshire. I’ve built garage shelving before, for an individual who liked things to look somewhat artistic and was not satisfied with the plywood-look, so for her I designed shelves using only 2-by-4's and they came out great. She and I ended up loving how they looked and structurally they were sound. In my opinion, the garage is the second best place to be in a house, after the kitchen of course. Two-by-four shelving like this might make you appreciate your garage more than you ever thought possible, adding both functionality and …

This weekend, I’m making Face-Cut-Out-Board Halloween lawn ornaments with kids. Anyone can buy or make one, but to build one is a different, more meaningful experience. Too often, young people are taught to go to a store for whatever they want and need. Kids are young and inexperienced, but come on, they aren’t stupid—they learn how to get things done easily. And if they see how easy it is to get anything they want without ever trying to figure it out, they’ll never appreciate anything. Frequently, kids don’t know what it took to make the money to buy the toy, and they don’t know what—or who—…

On Monday morning, I needed to take a trip to the hardware store. I will not expose the name of the particular store, but let’s say it was big. So, the light bulb in my refrigerator died Sunday night after "All American Handyman" aired. How convenient, right? (Not as inconvenient as the time I was driving to fax time-sensitive paperwork to HGTV and got a flat tire. I swear, anytime it has something to do with HGTV, something around me decides to break as if to test my skills.) Anyway, back to the store. I'm in this big hardware store to get a light bulb. I was anticipating that this should be…