Repair Tool

Our copier broke earlier this week, and a man was repairing it today.  He went out to do something and left his tool bag open in the mail room.  I was curious, so I started to look closely at the tools.  Along with nice-looking screwdrivers and needlenose pliers, there was, carefully hooked into an elastic band, a paper clip.

I laughed when I saw it.  Anyone who has worked with electric or electronic hardware knows the value of a paper clip.  It is such a useful, versatile tool.

Aside from computer repair, there are so many things you can do with a paperclip.  I have personally used paper clips to make handles for three crock pots* and do an auto body field repair**.

* Those plastic handles always fall apart after a few years.

** There was a plastic panel that had come loose from under the front bumper of my parents' van, and it was dragging on the road.  I reattached it with a paper clip twisted where a screw had fallen out.