Sunday 20th July
Find out about GoodGym TaskForce
Report written by Kash
Sevan and Kash make their way to the Westbourne Park area after an earlier rather successful mission in East Acton. They arrive at Mrs A, who needs help with assembling a new wardrobe.
Does the name of the wardrobe, Tallboy, sound intimidating?
A little bit. It's large, has drawers to assemble, and comes with hundreds of fixings. But it cannot be that bad, can it? "Flat Pack for Easy Home Assembly", the website says. And the estimated completion time is 90 minutes for two people.
Where are the tools?
There are no tools. Luckily, Sevan brings with him a single screwdriver. There is no hammer required for the job, though. Uh-oh.
Wait, has someone opened the box already?
Mrs A solves the mystery for Sevan and Kash. It involves her referrer, Ms E.
"E. opened the box and decided it was a bit too much for her" - Mrs A.
Here's where the GoodGymers come in.
Where are the parts?
Some can be found in the box, some next to a cupboard and others - surprise, surprise - hidden behind a window curtain! Well done, Sevan, for looking behind it! Phew.
What are those parts?
Good question. Five or so elements are labelled. The rest is unidentified. Sevan and Kash give their best guess, and Kash writes the numbers on the unknown pieces.
Are there instructions?
Luckily, yes! The print is small and the light in the room is dim. Kash cannot see the shape of the fixings in the instructions and condemns herself for not taking the glasses with her.
Is there enough space for assembly?
Yes - the parts awaiting their turn can be stored in the corridor - until Mrs A needs to go to the other room!
How long does step 1 take to complete?
No one recalls. Documenting the process would be like writing "War and Peace". After inserting 66 pegs into 66 holes in various wooden pieces and forcefully twisting 20 plastic elements labelled "P" into another 20 holes (which would have been much quicker with a hammer), the GoodGymers find out that step 1 also requires putting in several screws. With one screwdriver and two people. That's step 1 done. Hurray!
Was the wardrobe built in 90 minutes?
After two hours of searching for tools, wardrobe parts, and guessing which fixings are in compartments with multiple labels, Sevan asks Kash the difficult question.
"Do you want to stay till 7 pm to complete it?"
The mission started at 2:30 pm. The GoodGymers cannot work in parallel with Sevan's single screwdriver. Building the four drawers alone may take a while. There is no hammer to complete the job. The duo decides to pause the job before the wardrobe becomes three-dimensional without providing much use.
How does it feel to be defeated by the Tallboy?
Pretty ok. The rain is gone, the sun is out. Progress has been made. There must be better GoodGym fighters out there to take on the Tallboy!
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