Safecracking seems easy sometimes. I can\’t help thinking about it when I start to open a pull-top can; and the pull-ring breaks off before I\’ve even started pulling the top away from the can.

It happed to me recently as I was preparing a meal. What to do? I was hungry!

First, I tried using the can opener. It didn\’t very work well. A few sections of the can\’s lid did get opened, but it wasn\’t enough. I tried wiggling the handles of various utensils through those openings, using them as levers to pry up the lid. Still not much luck. I finally had to go to my tool box and fetch the pliers.

Even with the pliers I wasn\’t able to completely separate the lid from the can. The Jaws of Life would have come in handy, or at least a crowbar. And all that work just to get some black beans to eat! No wonder safecracking seems so easy. Is that why the Pirates of Penzance considered switching to \”burglaree\”?