Sometimes it takes a sharp rap

A colleague offered me an Altoid yesterday and I followed the "Never refuse the offer of a breath mint" rule and took one. 

"Ask me why I always keep an Altoid tin in my car," I insisted.

"Okay, why do you always keep an Altoid tin your your car?"

"So I can tell how much fuel I have in the gas tank."

She looked puzzled.

"My gas gauge is a little moody," I explained. "Some days it just doesn't feel motivated to rise above Empty, and then the only way to make it care is to rap sharply on the plexiglass covering the gauge."

She still looked puzzled.

"Sometimes a light tap will do," I added, "but sometimes the gas gauge gets so distraught about its sad, sorry, meaningless existence that it refuses to budge unless I hit it really hard, which hurts. Try it sometime--our delicate finger bones are not designed to take that kind of strain without complaining."

"Which is why you keep the Altoid tin," she said. "To beat on the dashboard."

"Correct," I said. "The Altoid tin is Curiously Strong and perfectly designed for rapping sharply on the gas gauge--plus it leaves behind that minty-fresh scent. In fact, I'm surprised the company doesn't promote the tin's fuel-gauge-motivating capabilities in its advertising."

She gave me that look--you know the look I mean. You're probably giving it to me right now, so find a mirror and you'll know what look I'm talking about. You wouldn't want to walk around with that look on your face all day, would you? I can help: here--have an Altoid. Curiously Strong, in more ways than one.