When we trooped with the circus, my husband and I built most of the rigging and props for our three acts. On the road, we needed to improvise if a part broke or became damaged. After our second year out, we built a new low-flying trapeze-referred to in circus jargon as a casting rig--for our comedy act. Making some modifications, we needed to design--and fabricate--a small pin for the spreader bars, which stabilized the rig.

Barely completing the project in time for our first engagement, we loaded up in the dark and accidentally left a cable behind. This unwelcome discovery came just two hours before the opening show! Unwilling to renege on our contract, we did some hasty brainstorming and managed to improvise a workable solution.

Following the accident, creative problem-solving played an even bigger role in my life, yet it took four years and ten minutes for me to begin! Four years of telling myself that I couldn't do a certain task anymore-like opening and closing my dining room curtains--and ten minutes for me to think of a different way to accomplish the goal. In this case, I asked someone to remove the fastener that attached the cord to the wall. This allowed me to put my wrist through the loop, lift it up to my mouth, and operate the cord with my teeth.

Since then, I've come up with dozens of simple solutions and scores of inventions. Most have proven quite economical, involving materials like rubberbands, safety pins, baskets and loops. (Once, when I gave a speech on this topic, I was introduced as the Queen of Low-tech!)

One of my best ideas? After moving into a townhouse, I called an electrician to come out and move the digital thermostat thirteen inches lower on the wall. This way, whenever I got cold, I could bump up the temperature control with my elbow. Before, I could only thaw out by sitting in my bathroom under the heat lamp. Why it took me six years to make this simple phone call, still baffles
me!

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