I am a huge
fan of the show Corner Gas and while working at my current job have watched
every single episode of the show’s six seasons at least four times each. Don’t
judge! It’s an easy show to watch! YouTube has all the episodes available,
commercial free! The show is set in a prairie farming community in Saskatchewan, and follows a motley crew of characters that I just can't get enough of.
Anyways, in the episode I’m watching right now, one of the
characters is showing a bunch of pictures she’s taken, and all the pictures
happen to be of grain elevators. It occurred to me that while I’ve seen many
grain elevators while living in and driving through Alberta, and vaguely know how they work, I really have no idea EXACTLY
what they do.
After some
research I found that I actually did know pretty much what grain elevators do
and how they do it, but thought I’d write about it anyways, in case some city folk are unaware.
Grain
elevators, first put into use in New York state in the early 1840s, are
basically just huge storage bins for wheat and other grains. The design of grain elevators, which is
pretty standard and very recognizable for anyone who has lived anywhere near
farming communities, is very specific, and ensures that while keeping the grain
safe and contained, it also makes for easy removal and eventual transport. The height of the elevators allows for considerable amounts of storage capabilities, and the more grain, the better they work, as the weight of the grain presses down and literally forces itself out of the metal
spouts that lead into whatever transport vessels are being used.
On a side note, I used to
always think it would be fun to jump into the unseen depths of grain, but my
mom quickly warned me that doing such would cause me to suffocate and die.
Yikes! So, no grain diving for me then.
