Highlights from May 9th's Live Chat with Mike Holmes

There were a ton of great questions asked to Mike today via his Live Chat. Here are some that I found particularly interesting...

First things first, a woman asked a question about ladder safety, and then thanked Mr. Holmes for being such a great teacher to her. To which, Mike revealed this "bombshell"...

It's nice to hear people are learning. No, I've never wanted to be a 'teacher', but I do think the whole point of the television show is educating the public, so I guess that's teaching.
And--I'm getting an honorary doctorate on Sunday! From Niagara University, in Pedagogy. Which is teaching--who knew? I'm just a contractor...;-)

When asked whether Mike wore his trademark overalls for safety reasons or as a fashion statement, Mike answered...

That's funny!! Whoever thought overalls would be considered a fashion choice?
Years ago, I actually used to wear a blue one-piece coverall suit--kind of like a mechanic suit. I liked the comfort--you can bend over, move and work without restriction. But it got too hot in the summertime, so I switched to overalls. Same idea--one piece, comfortable, lots of pockets. It wasn't so much safety as comfort.

A little later, Mike was asked a question about safety when installing and removing insulation. Mike gave a little interesting insight into the early days of filming Holmes on Homes.

Holmes on Homes started over 10 years ago... we weren't as careful about the message we were sending out to the public.

We used to --and I'm embarrassed to admit it--remove our safety glasses and respirators for the camera, because someone told us that we needed to see faces on television--and put them back on when the cameras weren't rolling and we were doing the real work. It was stupid. What it did was send the wrong message out.

When asked a question about staircases and handrails, Mike got personal, sharing a small but touching snippet about his life.

Stairs are very personal to me. My father died after a fall down a narrow, steep set of stairs with no handrail.

Mike was asked a question about injuries on the set of Holmes on Homes. He went into some detail about the perils of working on a home improvement reality TV show, on and off the set.

I've been very fortunate. Or maybe very careful. I've not had any serious injuries on my jobsites. Lots of cuts and scratches, but that's about it. And, we've had some injuries on a whitewater rafting trip the crew took together a few years ago--Uncle Billy broke his ankle. Oh, and he broke his wrist at the ATV ride a couple of years ago--but that's Billy. He's a wild man.

Years ago I put a 3" nail right through my thumb with a nailer. That hurt.

When I was a young man, I was working on a jobsite and my father came around to see what I was up to. He gave me hell because the site was a mess--debris everywhere--while I was working. I ignored him--like you do with your parents when you're young--and climbed up on a step to work above my head. One of the legs of the step went down into an open register that was covered over with paper and down I went. I wasn't hurt--apart from my pride. But I learned a lesson and I'm very careful to keep my jobsites clean. I think that's important.

Well, those are my highlights from the May 9, 2012 Live Chat with Mike Holmes. Yes, I did submit a question to Mike, and YES, he did answer it (yay!!!) but I just don't think it was "Holmes Spot highlight" worthy. Only the best will do.