Ode to a Magnetic Screwdriver

Posted on April 29, 2008 by Dave Bonta
This entry is part 11 of 34 in the series Odes to Tools

If the part that screws
is the head — this X-
shaped tip — then
the other end must be
tail: the shaft rooted
in transparent sun-
colored plastic like
an insect in amber.
And considering how
the power drill
with screwdriver bit
has replaced it,
this might as well be
a relic from
the Mesozoic.
The tip attracts
anything steel, but
can only solve for x,
descending into
the head of the screw
like a spirit
into someone possessed,
spinning like a purpose-
driven whirlwind
in a desert of wood,
inclining ever so slightly
toward magnetic north.

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About Dave Bonta

Dave Bonta (bio) crowd-sources his problems by following his gut, which he shares with one quadrillion of his closest microbial friends --- a tight-knit, symbiotic community comprising some 500 different species of bacteria, fungi, and protozoa.
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10 Responses to Ode to a Magnetic Screwdriver

  1. Joan says:
    April 29, 2008 at 12:13 pm

    Dang! I love these tool poems! Who would have thought the humble tool had so much metaphor in him. Too many favorite lines..too little time.. but as a benighted user of the “age of faith” hand screwdriver, I can relate to everything said and wish I had said any one of those things. “insect in amber”, “solve for x” , “purpose driven whirlwind in a desert of wood”. Am also seriously checking while on my next project to see if I’m inclined toward magnetic north. When does the book come out? I need to save up.

  2. Rachel says:
    April 29, 2008 at 8:17 pm

    I love “can only solve for X” and “like a purpose-/ driven whirlwind” and “inclining ever so slightly / toward magnetic north.” Great hints of Christian imagery in this one — the tilted cruciform of X, the hint of “purpose-driven life,” age of faith and someone possessed and even the desert reference. Nice.

  3. Dave says:
    April 29, 2008 at 9:37 pm

    Joan – I’m glad this one resonated with you. I still use screwdrivers, too – in fact, I used one today, prompted by the poem, to remove my bathroom drain. That was when I realized that the poem took a decidedly limited view of the screwdriver’s applications: it ain’t just wood, and it ain’t just screwing in. But then of course realism was never the point, was it?

    Rachel – Thanks. My first draft was more explicitly Christian – and probably a lot less fun. Best not to over-determine things with these tool odes, since one of the main ideas is to try and liberate tools from their narrowly defined roles.

  4. Dick says:
    April 30, 2008 at 1:17 am

    Good to read so splendid a paean to my favourite tool in the box, Dave.

  5. Joe Hyam says:
    April 30, 2008 at 6:26 am

    No mention yet of the ratchet screw driver which might almost introduce a new metaphysical dimension.

  6. Dave says:
    April 30, 2008 at 4:17 pm

    Thanks, Dick. I’m glad this one worked for you.

    Joe – I should probably know what a ratchet screw driver is, but I’m afraid I don’t. Sounds intriguing.

    I’ve been debating whether I should write about the Yankee push drill – I’m afraid that might be too obscure, too. As it is, my “hand truck” threw several people for a loop.

  7. Laura says:
    April 30, 2008 at 6:28 pm

    I’ve been enjoying these odes, too. They make me wish for a man versed enough in both hand tools and poetry to share them with.

    ;-)

  8. Dave says:
    April 30, 2008 at 7:58 pm

    What, they don’t have men like that in New Jersey? I’m disillusioned.

  9. Joe Hyam says:
    May 1, 2008 at 11:56 am

    A ratchet screwdriver allows you, by means of a ratchet mechanism, to fit the blade into the head of the screw and simply push forward. The head of the screw is then rotated by the forward motion alone, which is repeted until the screw is tightened or loosened. I have had one for years and found that because it provides extra purchase can be particularly useful with intractable screws.

  10. Dave says:
    May 1, 2008 at 12:00 pm

    Ah – that’s exactly how the Yankee push drill works! Cool. Thanks for following up.