I didn’t understand engines until 3 years ago. I HATED engines and the whole thing. Just a big greasy mess as far as I was concerned and I didn’t want to know.
But then, I got obsessed for 3 months. I decided to conquer that demon once and for all. I _really_ wanted to comprehend this thing I was driving.
Lots of youtube videos and wikipedia and I even looked under the hood. I was trying to fix a problem myself without having to go to the mechanic. [ended up having to junk the car but I *did* successfully replace some parts and I knew what was going on with it by the time I was done]. By success, the repairs were successful but they weren’t “enough” to save the patient.
So it wasn’t fair of me to say, “how can you own something and not understand it?” because I didn’t understand cars until I was 40 and even THEN only because I gave myself a crash course in it. Hated it at first… but once things started to ‘click’ then it started coming together, and I gained a huge appreciation for the backyard mechanic.
Now when I hear a car starting, I can visualize what’s happening in my head. I can see the liquids squirting on and through the engine and I know why they’re there and what they’re doing. It’s really cool to be able to do that. Not as well as mechanics by any means… but it’s nice to have an extra ‘window’ on reality.