Do some things niggle at your mind until you’re force to examine them from all sides? Unfortunately, this is a common occurrence for me.

“Sorry I’m late.” I held up my watch for my friend to see. “It’s self-winding. My wrists were lazy this week.”

My arms don’t move a lot when I’m writing all day at the computer.

She laughed and said, “My kids asked me why I used a single-function item like a watch.  Everyone carries their smart-phones around now.” She’s right. They do. Even I’ve noticed that.

Have you even seen a Generation Y  person without their smartphone?

But then . . . is it that efficient? Some places are aptly called Cell Hell in rural New Mexico. My watch may be slow but it’s better than figuring out the angle of the sun.

A generational thing kicks in–in two parts:

First part: Multi-use cell-phone

Dick Tracy had a multiple tasking watch in the late forty’s and added television to it in the sixties.   How many of you remember that? He was our true wireless pioneer, and he didn’t carry it in his pocket.  He wore it on his wrist.

Think about women’s clothes.  Even some jeans don’t have pockets big enough to carry a cell phone. And don’t you love it when a cell phones take on a life of its own–when it places calls to strangers. That usually happens after you’ve shoved it into some small place.  Cell-phone carriers either have to have a suitable pocket, carry a cell-phone friendly purse, or end up holding it all the time. Ugh.

If you’re the least bit hyper and find yourself multitasking how does using only one hand work for you?

Second Part: Single-Function Items

What exactly is a single-function item?

A  preserver of perishable foods becomes a photo album.

The Grandfather clock, is it a single-use item? It shows us the time but we also enjoy the sounds.

What about the closet? Guess where our dog goes when it thunders? Maybe that’s a good tornado shelter, too. Have you ever used a table knife as a screwdriver? How about a heel of a shoe to pound in a nail?

My spouse and I needed to carry a  ninety pound bucket of stucco compound quite a distance today.  I put a broom handle through the bucket handle and we both shared the load without strain.

Is there anything that truly has only one function?

I found myself looking around and wondering if anything existed that could be labeled a single-function item. Then Ms. Lucky L’ cat sauntered into my studio.

She’s a killer-attitude cat who’s convinced me she owns at least one single-function item.

Do you agree?

I’m a utilitarian, and find unintended uses for many things. This skill is actually quite handy when your protagonist is in a tight spot without a weapon and the dastardly villain lurks around the corner. Have you used something other than a standard-type weapon to do in your protagonist? 

I’d love to hear what’s your favorite unintended use for a supposedly single-function item.