Diversity

Because I needed one just now, I started thinking about lid openers. Is that even what you call them? I mean the things that you use to loosen and open lids that are otherwise too tight or too stuck.

We had one growing up that we called "Superman." Not because of what we used it for, but because it's shape made it look like a utensil with a cape on. (A metal cape, mind you, but we were imaginative children.) It worked really, really well.

I have one now that I think probably came from my great-uncle's house, since I got a bunch of his kitchen stuff when he died right before I set up housekeeping on my own. It's not shaped at all like superman, or any other cape-wearing hero or person. It doesn't have a name because it's not shaped evocatively at all. I can't even think of how to describe it to you. But it also works very well.

I am not a big fan of those round, textured pieces of rubber that are supposed to help you open jars. They don't really work very well. They help you get a grip, but that's about it.

I'm pretty sure that Superman and short squat thing (the one I have now, for lack of a better name) harness the power of leverage to assist, in addition to getting a better grip. Or else they just get a seriously superior grip.

Anyway, what's amazing to me is how many different kinds of devices there are to open or loosen lids. There are plenty of technologies where one design quickly becomes the only one available. But there are also things like jar openers that you can find many varieties of.

Do you suppose the difference has to do with how much money it takes to create said technologies? I mean, it can't cost that much to create a prototype for a new jar opener. A new, um, something high-tech and expensive and that requires expensive infrastructure, would be higher risk to experiment with, yes?

Anyway, I mostly just wanted to talk about Superman. I miss him. Short, squat thing works pretty good, but it was fun to make Superman fly to your rescue before he loosened your jar lid.