When my office building was shut down in favor of permanently working from home, some of the knickknacks we had accumulated over the years had to go. Just like at home, we had amassed a horde of items in need of new places to hide in; being a customer service environment, we stored paper plates, utensils and cups, along with table cloths for the occasional massive eat-in lunch orders for which we set up tables and serve-yourself items. We also had seasonal things to decorate the departments, and from that group I inherited a large metal lighted snowman.
He stood guard near the vice president’s office in front of a post for years, and he was frequently decorated with flower leis and suited up for various occasions. Unfortunately he is missing one arm which apparently was never found when we scoured the place to clear it out, and once an item like this is sold out, replacement parts are impossible to come by. The idea is that you throw the old one out and buy new. Since I am one of those people who doesn’t believe in hopeless causes, and since I even managed to retrieve the box for the thing (imagine that: somebody kept the box!), I figure I may be able to fix the snowman by creating a new arm for him.
This poses its own set of problems, because I really don’t know what size wire this creature is. I searched the question “How do I determine the gauge of a wire” and received a rocket scientist formula in reply. Not happening: I was a lost soul from the New Math generation who got by college math with barely enough sanity to remember what numbers are.
The next best thing is to go to a hardware or craft store and try to find a similar wire there. Then I can buy the correct length and bend it to shape in my late father’s cellar workshop. Or at least that’s my first plan.
Since the other arm is just wire, I could always fake it as a last resort, and just mock up a hand and cover them both with something resembling a pair of mittens.
Then comes the act of setting the thing out on my front lawn. I’ve never put out decorations in front before, because for years they were destroyed or toyed with, and it wasn’t worth the effort. Now that the block has a much different vibe, I think it may be worth trying again. At least I didn’t pay for the snowman. I will pay for a cord and a timer so it will come on at dusk. It will still be a bargain.
But I’ll say this: if I plug it in and it comes to life saying “Happy Birthday,” I’m out of here.
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