Tag Archives: mechanics

How To Unscrew A Bolt

Nationality: American
Age: 59
Occupation: Psychology Professor
Residence: Forest Falls, CA
Language: English

Text:

“Lefty loosey, righty tighty.”

Context:

Informant, KB, stated that he learned this saying from his dad, who often used tools and did handiwork for the family. KB said that one would say this phrase “to someone when they are putting a wrench on a bolt and they’re not sure which way to turn it to loosen it.”

Analysis:

This proverb provides practical guidance on unscrewing bolts or screws. It is especially memorable because it is succinct and utilizes rhyming and alliteration. This phrase might be used more commonly in parenting or mentoring contexts, in which the listener is just learning to use wrenches or screwdrivers for some kind of mechanical project or task.

Automobile Modifications

Nationality: American
Age: 19
Occupation: Student
Performance Date: 4/19/12
Primary Language: English

My informant’s grandfather worked in auto shops, and had a lot of friends who did the same. Between them, they passed around tricks for modifying cars.

One technique was to put a spark plug in the exhaust pipe so that when pulling on the choke, the fuel would come out partially unburnt, causing fire to emerge from the exhaust.

Another was to turn around the back seat of the car and put belts on the steering wheel, then driving the car in reverse by using the belts to steer.

Apparently these men are frustrated that cars are no longer manufactured according to methods they understand, which makes sense, especially considering they can no longer use their know-how to modify their cars in the ways they might want to, as if a community they were a part of has been partially erased by industrial and technological progress. All that they really have left are their memories of the way people used to treat their cars, and perhaps their own preserved vehicles. As time marches on, traditional mechanics will likely find themselves left by the wayside even more, only strengthening the folk bonds that remain between them.