Day 113: Simple Gifts

If you have worked alongside Neil whether it be in the yard, around the house, or helping someone move, you have most certainly been influenced my Neil's mastery of "simple machines". Over the years there have been myriad times that I have witnessed these machines in action. Allow me to to illustrate.
But first a review of the six fundamental simple machines
Lever
Wheel and axle
Pulley
Inclined Plane
Wedge
Screw

While the temptation of most people when faced with a difficult task is to approach head on to overcome it by brute force. Which in the case of the LeBaron boy's means to employ trick ankles, faulty backs, mediocre coordination (at best) , and soft uncalloused hands. Neil simply stands back and evaluates the situation only to then suggest the implementation of one or many of the above listed machines.

Here are just  a few examples.
Wheel and axel: If you have participated in a family move there are two things you are familiar with. #1 a moving dolly and #2 the infamous silver rolling cart. Dating back to the move to Holladay Blvd. Neil had aquired a small silver four wheeled cart which had a small length of nylon cord attached. This cart would usually have a piece of carpet on the top and would then be used to move heavy objects such as grandfather clocks, hutches, desks, etc.. This cart has also been the cause of many painful injuries including but not limited to rolled ankles (see above), bruised and sprained Achilles tendons, falls, and stubbed toes.

Wedge: A wedge comes in many forms. When it relates to dad I think a knife is the best example. I remember laying sod at the Holladay home and dad was showing us how to lay the sod like a course of bricks and how to patch it all together. When it came to going around the curved flower beds he produced a couple small Cutco paring knives and showed us how to cut the grass to fit the rounded edges of the concrete curbing. Mom wasn't too happy when she found that her nice knives had been dulled by grass, dirt, and rocks in the sod. Come to think of it she wasn't really too surprised either. 

Inclined plane: When moving things in to the basement of the Cottonwood Heights home many are familiar with the ramp of death created on the stairs. Dad placed two long pieces of wood on the stairs and began sliding boxes down instead of carrying them down one by one. This seemed to be a good idea except for when no one was there to receive the boxes and they would fall off the ramp or they would come flying across the tile in the basement kitchen.

Screw: Need I say more? If you have ever seen Neil empty his pockets you will find the following.
 A Pen, eye glasses, cracked sunflower seed remnants, breath mints, loose change, a partially used kleenex, and screws or a screw driver. Neil has a great understanding of screws and the mechanical advantage they provide from 12" lag screws used in the construction of the Brighton cabin to tiny eyeglass screws I have seen them all come out of dad's pockets.

Thank you dad for instilling in me the usefulness of each of these machines. People give me the strangest looks when I suggest using a lever or fulcrum to lift something.I may not have the strongest dad but I do have the smartest.