{"id":892,"date":"2019-06-14T11:11:28","date_gmt":"2019-06-14T11:11:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/racecoast.net\/omstest\/?p=892"},"modified":"2019-06-14T11:11:28","modified_gmt":"2019-06-14T11:11:28","slug":"in-praise-of-the-humble-clothes-peg","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/racecoast.net\/omstest\/in-praise-of-the-humble-clothes-peg\/","title":{"rendered":"In praise of the humble clothes peg"},"content":{"rendered":"

I think it is time for praise where it\u2019s due: Out of all the myriad items on a boat – from duct tape to bits of string with loops in one end, what do you think wins the prize for the greatest number of random but totally brilliant alternative uses?<\/span><\/p>\n

OK, so I\u2019ve just used duct tape to block up the holes in the spinnaker pole to stop it filling up with water (and emptying all over my sleeve) – and currently, there are no fewer than six bits of string holding back the halyards.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

But you expect that. What I find so extraordinary is the apparently endless uses on a boat for that most humble domestic item, the clothes peg (or, as the Americans would have it, the clothespin).<\/span><\/p>\n

They cost almost nothing and yet they seem capable of anything.<\/span><\/p>\n

I would be most interested if anyone can suggest even more unexpected uses but, to date, this is what I have come up with:<\/span><\/p>\n

    \n
  1. A peg marked \u201cInlet Closed\u201d gets clipped to the ignition key to stop me starting the engine and blowing it up for want of cooling water. \"\"<\/span><\/li>\n
  2. Another says “Shore Power” and stops me leaving the marina and taking the electricity point with me (apparently it happens more often than you would expect.\u00a0\"\"<\/li>\n
  3. A third peg goes on the key when the battery selector is switched to “starting”. In the past, I have nodded approvingly about the amount the solar panel was pushing into the service bank – without realising that it was the starting battery that was still selected – and rapidly going flat.\"\"<\/span><\/li>\n
  4. Of course there are always half a dozen pegs closing plastic bags in the galley.\"\"<\/span><\/li>\n
  5. The spring in a peg works brilliantly for holding the companionway lock open. When you close it from the outside, the peg just drops off on the inside.\"\"<\/span><\/li>\n
  6. Take a peg to pieces and the two halves make very effective wedges to stop the washboards rattling in a seaway.\"\"<\/span><\/li>\n
  7. When the fridge is switched off, a peg in the door holds it open against a loop of shock cord to allow air to circulate and stop the mould growing.\"\"<\/span><\/li>\n
  8. …and, of course, you can always use them for the laundry…\"\"<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

     <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    I think it is time for praise where it\u2019s due: Out of all the myriad items on a boat – from duct tape to bits of string with loops in one end, what do you think wins the prize for the greatest number of random but totally brilliant alternative uses? OK, so I\u2019ve just used … Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[60],"class_list":["post-892","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-clothes-peg"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/racecoast.net\/omstest\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/892","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/racecoast.net\/omstest\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/racecoast.net\/omstest\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/racecoast.net\/omstest\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/racecoast.net\/omstest\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=892"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/racecoast.net\/omstest\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/892\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":903,"href":"https:\/\/racecoast.net\/omstest\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/892\/revisions\/903"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/racecoast.net\/omstest\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=892"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/racecoast.net\/omstest\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=892"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/racecoast.net\/omstest\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=892"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}