How Time Flies

Time is irretrievable, forever escaping our grasp. Sometimes I don’t think the segments on The Great Australian Trade-Off should be timed, because sometimes in life itself, you take as long as you need to get the job done. In cases of home DIY, often the only timer is the slow march of death itself! Ha ha.

Anyway, I guess they need to up the drama with a ticking clock, which is super stressful even just watching. This week they were doing gas heater system repairs near Canberra, of all places. Supposedly they shot the first task inside Parliament House, but they cut from a generic exterior shot to some basement, so I have my doubts. I do know they each team was handed gas heater unit that looked like it’d been run over by several trains, and told they had an hour to get it working to industry standards.

For some added spicy drama, they were all given a huge box of parts that had to be shared throughout the teams, and there was seriously one point where I thought Cassandra was going deck Feng-Jin when they both reached for an undamaged set of heating rods. Feng-Jin is a Krav Maga champion, so it would’ve been quite the rumble, but the crisis was averted when Peta switched on her gas heater, and it exploded and flooded the room with gas. 

I’m sure that, for companies that do home heating system servicing, Canberra locals and maybe a few random aircon parts enthusiasts, this would all be quite enjoyable. But it was too much for me. Getting into cringe TV there towards the end and everything.

I will admit that I rather enjoyed the timer element on that one, but then they had to rush around Canberra getting quotes on various heating and cooling appliances and just the sight of them dashing around checking their watches made my pulse quicken. I had to go and make myself a coffee…which wasn’t my best decision. 

-Justine