Tuesday, January 30, 2007

Fixing the #^&$*^(%$^#%$#@ Toilet

Okay, I’m a writer not a plumber. But writing paying what it does, I’ve learned to do a lot of things. This week I learned to change the guts of a toilet.

Now it shouldn’t be that hard. There are directions right on the box of replacement parts. Only....only the directions assume a certain amount of knowledge—like how to get off a stubborn plastic nut.

I mean, I know how to deal with a stubborn metal one. I know the stuff you squirt on to loosen things up. But this blasted thing was plastic!

I ended up going out and getting a new and better wrench. Came back and pretty much demolished the plastic sucker. Good thing a new one was included with the new parts. And I listened to the directions that said to hand tighten only! It’s a good bet whoever worked on this toilet last used a wrench to tighten the nut instead.

It was annoying and ended up costing much more than I wanted but at least it’s fixed. Just in time for my daughter to visit for a week. Plus, if I’m going to hold more classes here, I sure as heck need to have a working guest toilet! (This one broke during the break at my last workshop here.)

Anyway, now I have another new skill. And maybe even some ideas for a scene in a story—if I turn my hand to a contemporary romance!

Hope all of you are having a great week and luck with any challenges coming up in your lives right now!

April