Yard work: using an ice pick

Self-tutoring about yard work: the tutor mentions a chore that might arise from snow.

I just returned from shoveling snow. This time, I was using an ice pick to clear some compressed patches.

One day, years ago, my wife was looking at the yard tools resting against a wall in the shed. “That’s an ice pick,” she motioned to a tool. I hadn’t known what it was. Moreover, I don’t know how it arrived there. It already looked old and well-used; I imagine it came from some household from back east.

A long time later, in winter, we had compressed snow and ice on the driveway. I recalled the ice pick, so fetched it. I’d never used one, but decided it might be worth a try.

Getting the knack of the ice pick took a while, but I realized how to use it to break the ice into loose shards, which one would then remove with a shovel.

The ice pick can be surprisingly effective; it still takes a lot of work to clear ice, notwithstanding. The impact conducts through the knees, hips, shoulders, and elbows. Yet, when one needs to clear ice, there doesn’t seem a better option.

Jack of Oracle Tutoring by Jack and Diane, Campbell River, BC.

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