Plumbing

On my days when I'm not performing, sometimes I take care of stuff at home. Like plumbing. The faucet had been dripping for far too long, so I yesterday I decided to fix it. I took everything apart and replaced the washers, including the bottom one that fits over a spring. In order to fit it all in the right tiny spot, I looked around for a spindle. Ah, there's a cuticle stick, perfect. I fit the spring in its place, then put the washer-ish thing (technical term) over it, and it worked like a charm.

Until I dropped the stick.

Zooop! Down it went into the drain. Not the drain out, mind you, but where the water comes in. It was gone.

I had no idea how to get it out. I envisioned it rotting in there, or swelling up so I'd no longer have cold water. I considered putting gum on the end of a long stick to try to coax it out, and then losing the gum. I thought about borrowing a wet vac. I dreaded having to explain this to a real plumber.

Thank goodness, I went to dinner at my friends Mary and Andy's house. Andy suggested I turn the water on slightly with the whole thing taken apart and see if the stick would pop out. As you can see from the upper right side of the picture, it did. Whew!


I meant to move the floss off the sink before I took the picture, but I'll just throw in a word about it. As a self-employed person who pays for her own health and dental insurance, I'll say that floss is a great invention. Anything that keeps my teeth in my head and the medical bills away is fine in my book.

My PSA for the day: Floss--cheaper than a root canal.