Tools of the Trade

You don't have to bring your own tools to a Habitat build, but some of the veteran volunteers do. And in our case, it was a good thing. Without the cat's paw, we might still be at the site, pulling out nails with our hammers, our bare hands, or even our teeth.

The cat's paw (or bear claw, I heard it referred to both ways) is a small crowbar for pulling out nails. Habitat must have been very optimistic in thinking that we volunteers on House #9 would all be able to drive the nails securely into the wood, and thus not require the use of a cat's paw. They supplied us with a dozen or so hammers, but no tools for prying out errant nails that bent or broke.

Luckily, a couple of members of our crew had brought their own cat's paws with them. At times these little tools were more prized than cold bottled water. Because when you whack a nail and your aim is slightly off, it bends like a rubber band. Sometimes you can pull it out with the claw end of the hammer, other times you need the hammer for leverage and the cat's paw for pulling.

And you want to remove bent nails as quickly as possible. Because when you're standing at the site with a bunch of bent nails sticking out of the wall like an angry artist's sculpture it's embarrassing. You want to get rid of the evidence. Fast.

That's why I recommend if you've never been on a Habitat build you bring along one or two cat's paws. Keep one for yourself, and save the other to use for barter. As in, "Sure, I'll let you use this, but that means you get to do roofing and I'll stay on the ground."

This way, your tools of the trade can become tricks of the trade.