No Solutions

The secret of the Shelter Institute is to think thoroughly and build right so we can live well. It’s best to make errors early and correct them quick, and to admire the perfection of imperfection.

Woolwich, ME

November 6, 2025

Albert J Nock once described the disadvantages of being educated. Among them is a conceit of knowledge, which lures credentialed “experts” into secluded cul-de-sacs of irrelevance and delusion.

“Of all ignorance”, Thomas Sowell warned, “the ignorance of the educated is the most dangerous. Not only are educated people likely to have more influence, they are the last people to suspect that they don’t know what they are talking about when they go outside their narrow fields.”

I’ve recognized that this week. The danger of a Professional Engineer attending a “Design-Build” workshop is the temptation to feign expertise in things he’s long forgotten or never known.

It’s like fudging a golf score. No one cares, and it does the fraudster no favors. If anything, it harms the liar by understating his handicap.

Learning works the same way. Students should treat their egos how a victorious politician treats campaign promises.

They should ignore whatever preceded today. Assume nothing, ask questions, and assess answers offered by teachers and classmates. Then request clarification of what isn’t understood.

Penny Stock

Like being happy about buying the cheapest house in the neighborhood, pupils should welcome being the “dumbest” person in class. They become the penny stock with explosive upside.

Besides, anyone who already “knows everything” has no reason to be in school. And his classmates (and instructors) would be grateful if he weren’t. Especially when he last practiced his “narrow field” three decades ago.

As a civil engineer, I specialized in roadways, shipping channels, and the Golden Gate Bridge… which I spent four years helping to retrofit.

But I never hammered a nail, turned a screw, or dug a hole. I’d prepare plans, hand them off, and return to my table. Others would build what I’d drawn. There’s a lot to learn from what they know.

Real Science

There’s a perception that with scopes, beakers, and tubes, “science” graces the world with the fruits of its labs. But most advancements work the other way.

Builders and practitioners are the true scientists. They observe and replicate, try new processes, and discard whatever doesn’t work. Academia often trails the trades, formalizing what creators have already constructed.

That’s not what happens here. The Shelter Institute is a family-run business that’s true to its roots. Pat Hennin started it fifty-two years ago. I met him Monday, and have liked him since.

Yesterday he wore a T-shirt with a toothbrush whining how it hated its job. Next to it was a roll of toilet paper reminding him it could be worse. It was a funny plea to stop griping. Accountability is the real curriculum.

Pat’s T-Shirt

Your Fault

Pat and I spoke during a cookout after yesterday’s session. Philosophically and politically, we have a lot in common. We talked about erstwhile independence, stupid zoning laws, yesterday’s elections, and our respective families.

He told me his father always emphasized that whatever Pat endured (or enjoyed) was Pat’s fault. My sons tired of me telling them the same thing.

Complaining does no good. Blaming others rarely helps. Better to wonder what we could’ve done to avoid the mess, and to learn from it… even if others seem to have caused the problem.

That’s the secret of the Shelter Institute. As discussed the other day, their philosophy is to think thoroughly and build right so we can live well. It’s best to make errors early and correct them quick.

That theme has persisted all week. Which makes sense. Repetition is the key to retention. That’s why I write these epistles: to help reinforce what I’ve learned.

Pier Pressure

After overviews of design, drafting, regulations, and road building, we delved deeper into Building Codes. These vary by jurisdiction, but the International Residential Code (IRC) is the basis in most places.

Gaius Hennin summarized pertinent aspects of the code, after which his sister Blueberry gave a great lesson on designing, setting, and laying foundations. She offered advantages and disadvantages of continuous walls and discontinuous piers, and when each would work best.

Pat preceded those proceedings discussing site selection, particularly the use of materials and trees to mute or magnify heat, water, or wind. He elaborated on pertinent properties of wood, stone, cement, and steel, and why and where each should (and shouldn’t) be used.

After our bird’s eye view the first day, we spent two afternoons ascending the soil. Moving to the studio, we grabbed tools, and leveled and squared foundation walls.

When the sides were set, we framed the floors. In came the I-beams and boards, which we latched to the foundation walls. We’d formed our floors. After a night of nourishment, they’ll become the seeds from which new walls will sprout.

Wabi-Sabi

Proper building, as a fellow student put it, emblemizes Wabi-Sabi… the Japanese appreciation of the perfection of imperfection. Supplemented by modern measurements and high-tech lasers, we still employ the hydraulic equilibrium of ancient Egyptians… which is what we used to level our foundation.

One method isn’t necessarily “better” than another. They’re merely different and complementary when used correctly.

Like many lessons this week, this one reminded me how my background as an economist reinforces my experience as an engineer. Each equilibrates economy and comfort.

Whether we like it or not, that’s what we all do. Wood or steel, nails or screws, blocks or pour, resources are scarce and time is sparse.

When building, as in life, choices must be made. Several times this week, Gaius Hennin referenced Voltaire’s aphorism than the perfect is the enemy of the good.

That’s true. Because perfection doesn’t exist. As Thomas Sowell said, there are no solutions; only trade-offs.

JD