I’ve just started to learn how to use big fancy powerful tools that have spinning and vibrating blades. Tonight, Candace taught me how to use the compound miter saw. We didn’t have clamps to hold down the wood we were cutting, so she held it at a distance while I pushed the spinning blade toward the wood. I wanted to make sure we were ready to proceed, so I instinctively utilized the only command safety system I knew and that she would understand as well.

Photo: Clayton Timmons

ME: “On Belay?” = Are you ready for me to start this large machine with the spinning blade?

CANDACE: “Belay is on!” = She is secure and holding the wood in place.

ME : “Climbing?” = I am going to turn on the large machine with the spinning blade.

CANDACE: “Climb On!” = She is ready for me to turn on the large machine with the spinning blade.

Turn on, push, cut, wait for blade to stop. Then step away.

ME: “Off Belay!” = I am unplugging the large machine with the spinning blade so no one accidentally presses the “On” button and causes the head-sized blade starts spinning.

So, there you go. I love it when housework and climbing collide.