The Born Identity

I could hear my heart almost beating out of my own chest. Something was obstructing the system, which was clear from the high amount of friction. I knew I was short on time, but the fact still remained: what could be stopping my system from achieving its goal? Immediate action was necessary, but how could I solve something when I was unaware of my own abilities? The shrill sound coming from the other room of, “You’re a mechanical engineer! You should be able to do it!” echoed through my head. The pressure was on. I proceeded to the closet to grab the only thing that I could think of…my toolbox. As I turned the machine over, something seemed to take over...my hawk eye vision kicked in as I pin-pointed each screw that held it together. My arm shot out as if it had a muscle spasm…a carefully calculated muscle spasm that led to my Phillips head screw driver being clutched in my white knuckled hands. I loosened the screws, and pulled the bottom off the machine, careful not to damage it.

What I saw next was simply horrific. Someone or something had snapped the drive belt! The mission was now to determine the closest Home Depot, Lowes, or any home care oriented organization for that matter. My target…a new vacuum belt for my upright Dirt Devil Bagless Breeze! After the target was collected, I quickly rushed home so as to not allow for one more wasted minute to pass that the carpet might remain unclean. My girlfriend’s eyes lit up as I came through the door, wielding the newly purchased flawless rubber belt. After a few minor cuts on the fingers, the machine was now fixed, and the apartment was full of the harmonious sound of a fully functioning vacuum cleaner.

What began as a personal proclamation of, “I’m not a vacuum repair man!”, quickly turned into a realization that my problem solving skills have drastically improved since starting my engineering studies at UNT. Much like Jason Bourne in the highly acclaimed action series, I was unaware of exactly just what I was capable of doing. In his case, he realized he was a highly specialized assassin/martial artist, where as I determined I would make a good home appliance repair man. Close enough.

The main point I’m trying to get across here is that studying engineering has in fact refined the way I look at things that are “broken”. It’s almost like I’ve been brainwashed to see a problem through until I deem the solution satisfactory. It’s a cool epiphany, and one that I look forward to utilizing the next time I’m playing a video game on a Sunday afternoon and hear a cry for help.