Changing a plug: the small task that reveals a generational gap
At 40, changing a plug is celebrated as an achievement. A sign of the loss of household skills? The quality of cheap plugs under scrutiny.
English · Original discussion in Spanish · Published
Changing a plug: a generational achievement or a forgotten basic task?
Someone proudly posting that they changed their first plug at 40 says a lot about how household skills have changed. The scene is simple: a two-wire cable, no earth wire, blue and brown colours, a good-quality plug next to the flimsy plastic 'cheap Chinese' ones. But the reaction was anything but indifferent: from sincere congratulations to the sharpest irony.
The plug in question was not one of the cheap ones. Today's market is full of soft-plastic, poorly assembled plugs, which turns a simple task into a nightmare. The advice: look for quality parts, even if they cost a little more.
Political jabs were not missing: jokes that a plug with a blue right side and a brown left could be mistaken for bipartisan politics, or that the antiestéticat qualifies as half a vocational course in electrics. Easy irony, but with a point: the loss of basic trades.
If the trend continues, Lonchafinismo (the Spanish art of slicing cold cuts thinly) could be the next skill to disappear. Or perhaps the next generation will have to learn to tie their shoes from a YouTube tutorial.
Someone proudly posting that they changed their first plug at 40 says a lot about how household skills have changed. The scene is simple: a two-wire cable, no earth wire, blue and brown colours, a good-quality plug next to the flimsy plastic 'cheap Chinese' ones. But the reaction was anything but indifferent: from sincere congratulations to the sharpest irony.
The plug in question was not one of the cheap ones. Today's market is full of soft-plastic, poorly assembled plugs, which turns a simple task into a nightmare. The advice: look for quality parts, even if they cost a little more.
Political jabs were not missing: jokes that a plug with a blue right side and a brown left could be mistaken for bipartisan politics, or that the antiestéticat qualifies as half a vocational course in electrics. Easy irony, but with a point: the loss of basic trades.
If the trend continues, Lonchafinismo (the Spanish art of slicing cold cuts thinly) could be the next skill to disappear. Or perhaps the next generation will have to learn to tie their shoes from a YouTube tutorial.
Also available in: Deutsch
Summary of a discussion on Burbuja.info - Foro de economía, actualidad y política., translated from Spanish and reviewed before publication. Read the full discussion (28 replies).
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