....which is why I don’t use combination locks
The other day (Monday, January 11, 2010) a kindly gentleman couldn’t get in his locker next to mine at the Canandaigua YMCA.
For at least 10 minutes he studiously twirled away at the combination lock sealing his locker, and it never unlocked.
“Which is why I don’t use combination locks,” I observed, about five minutes into his ordeal.
Finally he gave up, and started fiddling his cellphone.
It was playing country music downloads: “PLINKA-PLANKA-PLUNKA.”
I think he was waiting for me to leave.
That takes a while.
It takes me about 15 minutes to change back to outdoor clothes: long underwear, multiple layers, down jacket, hat.
A tallish dude strode in and had his combination lock open in mere seconds.
Ya got the feeling that lock better work or there’d be hell to pay.
This is unfair, of course.
Combination locks usually work with the right combination.
My high school locker had a combination lock, and I sorta knew the combination.
But operation of that lock was more by feel.
I slopped the combination, but could feel tumblers falling into place.
Same thing with the combination on my mailbox at college.
In fact, if ya’d asked me to repeat the combination for that mailbox I couldn’t.
I was operating it by feel.
When I finally left the YMCA, I don’t think that poor guy had ever got into his locker — at least not yet.
Pinning a padlock key into my running shorts is no different than pinning a car-key at Boughton Park.
I’m not about to have some combination lock keep me outta my locker.
• I work out in the Canandaigua YMCA exercise-gym. I do so in my running-shorts. (“Canandaigua” [“cannon-DAY-gwuh”] is a small city nearby where we live in Western NY. The city is also within a rural town called “Canandaigua.” The name is Indian, and means “Chosen Spot.” —It’s about 15 miles away.)
• “Outdoor clothes” for Winter — around 15 degrees and snow.
• “Boughton Park” (“BOW-tin” as in “wow”) is the nearby town park where I run and we walk our dog. I still run, despite advancing age (almost 66) — still can.
For at least 10 minutes he studiously twirled away at the combination lock sealing his locker, and it never unlocked.
“Which is why I don’t use combination locks,” I observed, about five minutes into his ordeal.
Finally he gave up, and started fiddling his cellphone.
It was playing country music downloads: “PLINKA-PLANKA-PLUNKA.”
I think he was waiting for me to leave.
That takes a while.
It takes me about 15 minutes to change back to outdoor clothes: long underwear, multiple layers, down jacket, hat.
A tallish dude strode in and had his combination lock open in mere seconds.
Ya got the feeling that lock better work or there’d be hell to pay.
This is unfair, of course.
Combination locks usually work with the right combination.
My high school locker had a combination lock, and I sorta knew the combination.
But operation of that lock was more by feel.
I slopped the combination, but could feel tumblers falling into place.
Same thing with the combination on my mailbox at college.
In fact, if ya’d asked me to repeat the combination for that mailbox I couldn’t.
I was operating it by feel.
When I finally left the YMCA, I don’t think that poor guy had ever got into his locker — at least not yet.
Pinning a padlock key into my running shorts is no different than pinning a car-key at Boughton Park.
I’m not about to have some combination lock keep me outta my locker.
• I work out in the Canandaigua YMCA exercise-gym. I do so in my running-shorts. (“Canandaigua” [“cannon-DAY-gwuh”] is a small city nearby where we live in Western NY. The city is also within a rural town called “Canandaigua.” The name is Indian, and means “Chosen Spot.” —It’s about 15 miles away.)
• “Outdoor clothes” for Winter — around 15 degrees and snow.
• “Boughton Park” (“BOW-tin” as in “wow”) is the nearby town park where I run and we walk our dog. I still run, despite advancing age (almost 66) — still can.
posted by BobbaLew at 9:38 AM
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