Do We Have To Keep Making Everything So Complicated?
With some things, "new and improved" is good. I enjoy a lot of comforts and conveniences provided by modern technology and by the fact I was fortunate enough to be born a citizen of the greatest, most prosperous nation in the history of the planet. But sometimes, can't it be possible to leave well enough alone?
I needed a gas can. A simple container to hold and transport gasoline from a dispenser into a tank attached to an internal combustion engine. Now, I haven't bought a "gas can" in ages...decades maybe. In simpler times a gas can was a simple contraption made of metal with a metal spout. The fancy ones had a flexible metal spout. They were simple, they worked and they lasted a long, long time assuming you took care of it.
Apparently, all gas cans these days (or at least the ones I could find locally) are made of plastic and they're "new and improved" to avoid spills and the destruction of the planet. I didn't realize the few drops of gas that dripped out of my old metal can spouts were destroying the environment, but apparently it's a real problem. For someone.
So I paid almost $20 for a plastic "can", with a "handy, no spill spout" at Home Depot. What they don't tell you is these are like crew-served weapons systems...you need several people to effective operate one and pour gas into your vehicle. And so spill my ass! The slightest amount of pressure applied sideways to the nozzle that's been inserted into the vehicle port results in more gas spilling to the ground than is going into the vehicle. No matter how many times I stopped and reapplied the spout assembly it leaked because of flexing in the mouth of the can. And I need all three of my hands to operate the damned thing.
I guess I'm gonna have to bite the bullet and buy a genuine Made in the USA, modern, metal gas can complete with funnel. Who'da thought you'd see the day you would pay upwards of $40 or more for a freakin' gas can?
