I just stared into a screen watching someone else make cool stuff.  I wonder what that says?  

I think one of the problems is.......almost no kids go and find a mentor anymore.  When I was in high school my dad got me a job at a lawn mower shop, and the fellow who owned and ran it was a great man and a good teacher.  He was a good family man with great christian values, an old school roadside garage mechanic before changing his business to lawn mowers and chainsaw sales and service.  In the winters when the lawn care business was slow he rebuilt Ford Model A and B engines (I got to do the disassembly and cleanup and he did the repair/rebuild).

I didn't have video games or the internet as a distraction - and the only way I could have the motorcycle I wanted was to have a job to pay for it.  It was a kinder and simpler and more gentle world back then when you lived in the country........and thankfully my job and boss both taught me valuable skills that I am still using today!

I just don't know if there are any small businesses that would hire and train a young person to do things anymore......or if there are many kids even want to spend time with an old adult learning skills.  I think a lot of this still goes on in the rural areas - last week I was at a fair and at the tractor pull there were a lot of young men with restored tractors.....I have a feeling they likely were involved in the restoration and maintenance with their dads.

Another observation:  where I live there are a million condos with no garages, basements are a thing of the past, so where can anyone do stuff?
I live in an apartment and rent a huge garage from a nice korean family. In 3 years I have had zero inquiries from anyone in the family about what I'm doing. Good for me, everyone else is stuck into a screen.
Modern life is tough if you are mechanically inclined, not to mention the digital conversion where even John Deere claims ownership over what you just bought.
'Right to repair' ? pull the other one!
Cheers!  

Mechanics are a strange breed , most revel in their own skills , then there are the few that have polished the skill of watching , listening & learning the new skills. Usually from some older guy(s) with a mentoring attitude. I figure I have learned 80% of my skills from only 5 to 10% of all the mechanic I have worked with. So I have had way more than one than one mentor , absorb information whenever , wherever & from whoever you can.
You are in charge of your education , but nothing replaces a true mentor. Now that I’m old I’m sure some youngster is trying to steal my skills.