True Horizontal

A compact torpedo level lay across a reclaimed wooden block on the shelf. Bright yellow casing. Inside the center window, an amber fluid cylinder held a solitary air bubble resting slightly left of center. An off-balance reading. I paused. Step one. I stepped forward, braced my foot blocks against the timber, and pressed my beak firmly against the level's corner. A steady, millimeter push. The wooden block shifted with a dull scrape against the shelf. Inside the glass, the bubble responded—it drifted smoothly rightward, settling squarely between the two crisp black line markers. True horizontal achieved. I took two steps back to confirm. Balance locked.