Plastic Schmastic

I ask you, does this tiny piece of plastic look like it would support a pantry shelf intended to hold canned tomatoes, dried beans and bags of flour? No? Okay, do you think four of these pegs would do the job?

I didn’t think so either.

And I was right. While plastic bags, paper towels and styrofoam bowls were within its weight tolerance, the 10-kg bag of basmati proved too much.

Much as I’d like to, I can’t pin this one on Handy Andy. Gravity and a design team of non-cooking bachelors get the blame. What were they thinking? It would be a “convenience” feature? While these pegs allow me to adjust the shelf height easily, they aren’t exactly the most sturdy choice, as this next picture proves.

This is my dining room table in the aftermath of the failed pegs. How convenient is that?

While the rest of the world watched the closing ceremonies for the Olympics, Andrew and I reattached the shelf with metal brackets, real screws and a bit of cursing. One power drill, four plugs, two screw drivers and a flashlight later, we restored order. Permanently.

Plastic is for sissies.