Olga stood out when she applied to the old bindery. Russian accent, punk haircut, biceps bigger than Dave’s–not to mention first female mechanic we ever had. Mike gave her the usual tests, including the mystery gear. She was holding it, looking confused at it, when the greeting card spinner started burying her in those stupid art prints from the Widow Jefferies. He laughed about it and said she wouldn’t last when she didn’t give up on it after a month. Six months later, she figured out it wasn’t ours at all. It wasn’t. It came from an antique meat grinder that Sal’s Deli uses to hold up the corner of their shed roof.
She was so mad! Yelled at Mike in Russian while he stood there stunned for a minute. Then went dead quiet as he held out his hand to shake hers in admiration. He told her then, that no other mechanic had ever figured it out, and that she was ready to work unsupervised. You’ve never seen such a smile!
*train as bindery engines, ruff as paper on cutting tower, tower as armatures, cutting tower, pieces of tower as switchplate and fluttering art prints.
