How
often have you come up with seemingly unusual solutions for occasional
problems?
Despite
the title, this essay is not about firing up your lawn mower to
mow the lawn during a winter storm featuring significant snow
accumulation totals. But it does begin by considering clearing
the lawn of snow.
Oil
deliveries. It’s certainly not a strange thing to need heating
fuel for your home. Fairly common. What is strange is the timing
of such needs, especially when you are forced to think about where
the delivery point is on the house.
Terry
and I have lived in two homes where the oil tank was located in
the corner of the basement that was furthest away from the driveway.
Add in something like a foot of snow on the ground (or more),
and you suddenly get a terrific situation.
The
obvious solution is just to arrange a delivery at the right time.
Clear yard. Front half of the winter season. One fill likely will
last you long enough so that the earliest you might need to top
off the tank is the spring. Spring. Clear yard again. Easy.
But
life doesn’t always work that way. So, here’s a tip for any of
you snow blower owners out there: You can clear a path across
the lawn with your snow blower.
On
the surface, that sounds both perfectly reasonable and incredibly
stupid. Snow blowing the lawn? Well… the next time you get more
than a foot of snow dumped in your yard, have a string of days
with temperatures forecast in the single digits, then meander
into the basement and see the gauge on the tank is hovering just
above empty… don’t call me if you decide that grabbing the shovel
to clear a 200-foot path for the deliveryman is the best option.
I’m going with the snow blower.
Honestly,
the foundation of this idea could be summarized simply by considering
a butter knife. It’s a letter opener. It’s a screwdriver. It’s
never been something you take out of the drawer only when you’re
making some toast. An item’s uses should rarely be limited to
an intended purpose.
I
think my favorite examples of this are when a combination of need
and inconvenience creates amusing results. Think of a time when
you’re in the basement, or out in the yard, and the tool you need
is in the garage. Sure, you could put everything down, walk the
length of the house, head up the stairs and go to the garage,
rummage through your tools to find a hammer, go back to the basement
and use it, then turn around and repeat the journey to return
the hammer to the garage. Or…
…the
handle of the screwdriver you do have might work. And, we’re all
friends here. Who hasn’t pounded a nail into place using the bottom
of a small can of paint? We’ve all been there. None of us want
to head up the stairs and walk to the garage.
There’s
probably some sort of secondary natural law off to the side here.
Necessity is the mother of invention works for grabbing the paint
can and hoping the nail goes into the wall instead of puncturing
the can. Across from this would be the thought that whenever a
lightbulb burns out it always involves a bulb several rooms, two
doors and a flight of stairs away from where you store your extra
bulbs. Combine the two and hilarity ensues.
Whenever
I rake leaves, it is quite likely you will see me with a snow
shovel nearby. Just an easy way to scoop the leaves… an oversize
dustpan of sorts for the project. When you want to use the wheelbarrow
to make your life easier, some times you need a solution to make
that possible.
Two
friends of mine use a tennis racket to take care of spring-cleaning
needs with rugs and pillows and such. Another friend has rubber
bands around the handles of many tools, which makes them less
likely to slip when he puts them down on an uneven surface.
A
few years ago, I was complaining about my glasses. There was a
scratch on the side arms, and I used nail polish to smooth it
out so it didn’t cut me. I had taken them off, muttered that I
needed some nail polish, and a friend responded:
“Got a screw loose?”
“Huh?”
“You
said nail polish and you’re looking at your glasses. If you
put some nail polish on the little screw it will tighten up
in place and not be as likely to loosen on you.”
Now,
I didn’t need the nail polish for the screws on my glasses. But
the friend did hit upon another thing, which is often applying
something like nail polish or glue to a screw you want held in
place. Glue on a screw? A surprising idea? Nope. You may have
even heard that one. But ask someone that wears nylons about nail
polish. You’re going to find out there are only about one million
ways to use the stuff that doesn’t involve your fingernails.
A
snowblower and a winter storm… it’s not just a combination for
treating driveways and sidewalks. Just remember, when it comes
to addressing any problem around the house, an item’s uses should
rarely be limited to an intended purpose.