A sharpened spoke is a valuable tool for a bicycle mechanic, and I made this one a few years ago. Sharpened the end of an old spoke on our grinding wheel (probably the converted belt vibrator that we used to use as a grinder - those things from long ago where a person wrapped a belt around their waist and it oscillated - I think they were supposed to encourage weight loss), then wrapped it with old plastic handlebar tape and carefully finished it.

My extra work resulted in it not getting thrown out - most bare metal sharpened spokes don't last too long, but this one is still around. I saw it sitting there today, unraveling, and felt a kinship with it. It was a hard day.

I wonder, when I leave my job, what my legacy will be? Will I be the guy who helped turn our organization into a sustainable nonprofit, or will I be the guy who made the unraveled tool, leaving behind unusable curricula and a tradition of falling short of establishing workable long-term solutions to our problems?

I think I'll re-wrap the tool tomorrow.