Tag: bluecollar

My days are spent fixing broken machines.
Sometimes the owners misuse them,
sometimes a part simply wore out.
Poor engineering is possible too.
The problem isn’t always obvious
and some machines are quite complicated.
But if I know its designated purpose,
then give me enough time to observe it
attempting to fulfill this function
and I might have a diagnosis.
Give me time to peruse the manual.
Are there idiosyncracies
and proprietary parts?
Are they generic and universal,
is it analog or smart?
Give me enough time to open panels,
watch the brake in operation,
trace a wire, or listen to the gear box.
Just give me enough time.
Just give me enough time.
Just give me enough time,
this one is particularly difficult.
See, I still don’t understand its purpose
and I cannot find a manual.
Certainly I am intimately acquainted
with its idiosyncratic patterns
as it attempts to fulfill some function,
but all too often, falls short.
What that function is,
I do not know,
for it has never completed anything,
– no products to show –
and I have begun to suspect poor engineering.
Still! Is it not JUST a machine like all the others?
Given enough time
and careful observation,
surely I can determine
the cause of this malfunction.
Surely I can fix it
and see what it was meant to do.
But God, I’ve been troubleshooting
this machine
for almost fifteen years now…