Writing Samples

Humpty Dumpty had a great fall.
Or, was he pushed?

Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall.
Humpty Dumpty had a great fall.
All the king's horses and all the king's men
Couldn't put Humpty together again.

We've all heard this 1810 published rhyme that carries the assumption that Humpty Dumpty is an egg (actually it is an 18th-Century reduplicative slang for a short, clumsy person) that when broken can not be repaired by those in the king's staff. Yet it neglects to mention what the King himself, could do to prevent Humpty Dumpty from falling or if he could put Humpty together again. This made me think of a similar issue that confronted me several years ago.

I used to have a 1967 16' Starcraft runabout with a 70 hp Chrysler outboard motor, and I loved that boat. It reminded me of the 1965 16' Starcraft my dad bought when I was a kid and that he taught my brothers and I to waterski and fish with. When I took my family out in my boat, all was good because, it allowed me to share with my family, the same good valued things that my dad taught me. In my boat, I was the king of the world.

I will admit the king (me) was completely unaware that modern unleaded gasoline was not recommended for a classic motor. I found this out on a fun run in Fox Lake, where I burned a hole in the top piston. Later I learned that the problem could have been avoided if I would have added a specific additive that replicated leaded gasoline. My boat motor had a great fall and I could have prevented it from happening. My king status now seemed more like the level of Gilligan's.

But being a man that successfully rebuilt a 1964 Ford Dog-box Van while living in the Philippines, I decided to tackle the repair myself. Getting the parts will be simple I thought, "At least now I can use the internet to find them." I got started and as I dismantled the motor, I took pictures of everything so that I could have a guide to put it back together. Long story short, I could not find all the parts I needed to repair the motor in over two years so I gave the boat away to someone who planned to put a new motor on it.

continued at:   Humpty Dumpty had a great fall