If I Had A Hammer...

When Bob left his job as en electronics design engineer, to train to become a Baptist minister, his work colleagues gave him a blue Black and Decker Workmate. A colleague told me that they didn't normally give such expensive parting gifts- but nobody could remember anyone else ever leaving the company to go to a job where they would earn a much lower salary!

Bob still uses his workmate, regularly - and laments the fact that the newer black/orange models are nothing like as good.

Rosie enjoys watching her Dad and her Grandad making and fettling things, and her Mum repairing and fixing bicycles. So I couldn't resist it recently, when I was in a CS recently and a staff member brought an item through the shop to put in the window display. It never got there - I intercepted her, and took it straight to the till!

A child's version of a Workmate, with all the tools - and with it, a tool tray containing even more tools. All this and change from a fiver! [to buy all this new would cost at least five times as much]  "Is it for your grandson?" asked the lady at the till. "No, my grand-daughter Rosie, she is three" I said. "Oh dear, I really shouldn't have presumed it was for a boy, should I?" she said, grinning. 

The parts were a little dusty, and so I brought them home and gave them a thorough scrub in the bath. When Rosie grows up, I hope she too will be as keen on "Make do and Mend" as the rest of us!