Tales from Eternal Essence: The Collapse
Introduction
Previous iterations and of the Tales blog have focused on the difficulty and misfortunes faced by those at Eternal Essence, and this one is going to continue the trend. One day there will be a story of great success, and while there are plenty of those, it’s far more entertaining to laugh at th mishaps of our past. We hope you feel this way too. If not, we promise the next one will focus on a success, rather than overcoming a struggle.
This tale is one of structural failure. There is no staff incompetence (initially). No hilarious mistake. Just the tragic sundering of vital equipment.
The Collapse
‘Twas a day like any other: birds were singing, music was playing, and the team at Eternal Essence was doing admin. There was no sign of danger. No clues that could possibly hint and what was to come. Just normal mundane work. Then, all of a sudden came a crash from the workshop. The staff, at their desks in an adjacent room, looked at each other. There was nobody in there. No equipment was turned on. How could something have happened to make such an explosion of sound? Bewildered, the production lead went into the workshop, for he was the one in charge of it.
Now Bernard (whom you may recall from a previous tale, but now ith more responsibilites) in normally quite an astute individual, and when surveying the room, didn’t find anything different. There were still stacks of boxes, fragrnaces in their racks. Everything was in its place, and nothing appered to be damaged. Yet, something felt off. Though he was yet to know what, Bernard knew something was very wrong. Instinctively, he meandered to a corner of the room where the greatest off vibe was originating. Upon assessing the boxes and workbench, he finally discovered the cause of the problem: the bench wasn’t attached to the wall at one end. This had caused all the boxes on top of it to shift and tilt, but so subtly you had to be right next to them to notice.
The Plan
Fortunately, equipment underneath the bench had stopped the it collapsing completely. Unfortunately, the bench somewhat crushed said equipment. This seemed bad, but Bernard soon discovered the damage was merely superficial. With some cunning menouvres, he rearranged the room to support the bench without damaging anything further. This, however, had a down side: there had to be some equipment support the the worktop so it didn’t collapse completely and take the wall with it. Now, with Eternal Essence having a wide range of products available, all the items needed to be on hand to fulfill orders. So now there was a conundrum.
Bernard and the rest of their team put their heads together and thought as hard as they could. On balance, would it better to make the full range of products and forsake the bench? Or should they stop the bench breaking more and slow production of products? Obviously, the answer was the latter. Apologies could always be made to customers and discounts/refund offered. What couldn’t be replaced are the items destroyed if the bench fully collapses. Not without considerable expense, at any rate. Thus, the team elected to not mess with the situation any further, and contact a professional.
The Fix
Having called a builder, the crew at Eternal Essence patiently awaited his arrival. nNghts passed, and still the bench remained at an odd angle; slightly iconvenincing everyone. Eventually, after several days, the builder arrived. Equipped with tools, some brackets and a new leg, he braved the box-strewn room and began his working. Entirely lacking practical ability, the Eternal Essence team could only wonder what magic he worked. For after several hours, the builder emerged, with the worktop appearing fully horizontal. Upon furthering inspection, Bernard saw they there were news screws, support structures and a sturdy steel leg where there was previously none. The fact that such a simpel device could solve a problem so large almost blew his mind. With the problem solved, the team rejoiced and thanked the builder verbally and financially.
This catastrophe was over, but would it be the last?
Moral of the Stroy
There are several takeaways from this breif and mildly interesting tale:
- Always build things with more support than you think they’ll need. This applies to life and furniture: you never know what additional weight something might need to carry.
- Try and pick up some practical skills where possible. A few YouTube tutorials can save you time, anxiety and money.
- Even the simplest of taks, ideas or plans can suffer enexpected misfortune. Prepare as much as possible, and when it comes, know that won’t last forever.
Published: 08/07/2022