I’m not as young as I used to be, and neither is my house. Houses age faster than people years, but not quite like dog years, so my 20 year old house is like a 60-ish year old person.
A few years ago it required a roof transplant, followed by (not one, but two) HVAC—heating, ventilation and air conditioning units. I think that when they went from being furnaces and air conditioners to HVAC they got to raise the price.
Last weekend a storage shelf gave up the ghost, just as I was standing in the line of fire; I spent the rest of the weekend, bruises and all, building a shelving system you could use to hold the piano.
My confidence was building—I remembered how I used to be able to fix things. Then I disassembled an iPad, replaced the broken screen—and the batteries, as long as I was in there. When reassembled, it worked. My confidence took a great leap.
Now, normally I am not burdened with an overly strong ego, which is probably good and keeps me out of trouble. However, after two successes in a row . . . . Well, when the shower started leaking,I felt I was up to the challenge.
I Googled and YouTubed and decided that I could handle this, even though plumbing has always been my nemesis. I bought the correct parts, and even drove 20 additional miles to get a particular lubricant that was supposed to make disassembly of the shower control easy. Within 15 minutes of arriving home, proper tools, parts and lubricants at hand, the faucet assembly snapped off at the wrong end.
This was now a job for not just a plumber, but a plumbing contractor. Fortunately we found one who showed up within the hour. Everything is back to normal.
In hindsight, it makes sense. If my heart and circulatory plumbing were messed up, I’d want the right specialist, and not some amateur to operate on me.
I guess my house felt the same way.
sfnowak 