Tuesday, August 18, 2009

The joys of home maintenence

There are some days I wonder if T and I had any business buying a house. Our knowledge about home maintenance is limited. The majority of the time we hire out jobs that need attention or we just turn a blind eye. For instance, two years ago T, with my consent, ripped the closet doors off our guest bedroom closet - I can't even remember why at this point, it's been so long. To this day the closet remains doorless and you can see all of my off-season clothes hanging in it as you reach the top of our second story. Classy.

But today I did it. I tackled a project on my own. The guest bathroom drain was plugged. In the past, if my homemade "Draino" (a combination of baking soda, vinegar, and boiling water) didn't do the trick, I called our faithful plumbers. God bless Scott, the plumber, who showed me how to unclog the drain by myself last year. The man did not crack a smile or even show traces of a pleasant personality during his time in my home, but he taught me a life-long skill. And this year, as I plunged and fished out the gunk from our drain, I silently thanked him for the $80 he saved me today. Joyously, victoriously, I enjoyed the lack of water pooling at the base of our tub. Sweet success.