That Should Work

We assume that if there's a button to push, it's going to work. Like those cross-the-street buttons or elevator buttons. Sometimes, what we think will work, doesn't. 

So, imagine the typical scene: You're late for work at your office on the 10th floor of that generic building and you jump into an open elevator, only to find that the doors aren't closing fast enough for you so that you can get on with your business. So, you jab at the "close door" button four or five times and, after a slight delay, the doors ease closed, leaving you satisfied that you have exerted masterful control over the recalcitrant machine.

You get to the meeting, and you realize that someone has forgotten that the month of May can still be chilly in these parts and has left the air conditioning on. You get up from your chair and adjust the thermostat, believing that you have saved the poor administrative assistants from chattering teeth.

At lunchtime, you decide to take a walk around the park across the street so you put on your special rocker-ized shoes that are supposed to tone your calves and quads and glutes while you walk. You think of it as double-dipping in the fitness...