Most little girls have the feeling at one time or another that they would like to punch some little boy's nose for him. Sooner or later, they forget about it. All except Melinda. She used to go out of her way to find things to do that would make her strong. Wherever there was hard work to be done, there was Melinda pushing in for more than her share .... until three years ago when Melinda was fifteen. She marched into the one place in town where you have to be strong to do the job and asked for work. It was the town blacksmith shop in San Bernardino, California. The blacksmith thought his ears had gone bad on him. Here was a fifteenyear-old girl asking for a job swinging a sledge hammer. He laughed. Melinda said nothing. She just walked over, picked up one of those sixteen-pound hammers and swatted the shop anvil a ringing, shattering blow. "How's that?" she asked. She was hired.