My dad/grandfather didn't hang around in the bedroom, living room or kitchen. He was making/fixing things in his workshop or the garage or outside working around the house, etc.
Today's males got nothing to do. The modern world has done away with a lot of that or they pay to have things done and don't do anything.
So, when not at their job they sit on their azzes playing video games, surfing the web, online betting, or other time-filling activities.
No wonder everybody is depressed and on meds.
People today will spend the money to buy nice things rather than old crap they have to fix every few months. The new generation has proven this for the most part. 50-100 years ago people would buy worn out crap and fix it because it saved them money.
My house is 45 years old and i can tell you i spend about 1-2 hours a week "fixing" things. Things that "need" to be fixed at least.
Now i could easily "find" things to do if i didn't have other hobbies i enjoy more. Working on a house or something like that is the last thing i would ever choose to do, i have a lot of real hobbies.
Perhaps gramps was looking for an excuse to get away by "creating" projects?
My dad did the same thing. It was his release to have time alone.