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Back in the day, I was working industrial plumbing, doing instrument fitting. Our instrument super wasn't much of an instrument person, I think he came up through the insulation department.
Well, this guy walked around and "inspected" everything with a ball peen hammer. I mean he would tap on anything he could reach. Not a good thing to do with 3/16" tubing. Tends to dent it.
We all were getting a bit annoyed at all this useless tapping, so I got one of the welders for the day to work on some stands in the fab shop. In comes "Maxwell" with his silver hammer and proceeds to whip his hammer out and starts tapping on our new stands. I reach over and grab his hammer and set it on the steel fab table over a hole drilled almost all the through from bottom and tell him to leave his toy for a minute and come over here and help me move something.
While his back was turned the welder tacked his hammer from under the table and snuck out real quick, but not before opening the shop doors wide. A crowed gathered to watch the big moment and we didn't have to wait long for "El Burrito" (Our slang for little jackass) to reach over and pick his hammer up to walk out. Of course it didnt' budge, so, like the Mighty Cassy, he put forth a mighty effort and proceeded to break the handle off his precisous tool, leaving the hammer tightly tacked to the table.
He stalked off and as he did, the crowd gathered started exchanging money that was bet on how long it would take him to break his hammer. I took a cold chisel and a drilling hammer and gave one good little tap and off popped the hammer head. I called to Maxwell to take his hammer with him and tossed it to him as he turned.
And this is the part I can never forget. You know how girls are supposed to throw, well, like girls? I think they learned from El Burrito. He had the most effeminate overhand toss as he tried to throw that hammer head at me. It went all of 4 feet before clanging into the concrete and skittering across the floor.
His name was promptly changed to "La Burrita". Which reminds me. His birthday is coming up soon. I need to send him some flowers.
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"My clients’ wishes are the center of my attention." -- David Guido, a contractor in Woodstock, N.Y.
New York Times, July 20, 2006
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