Jack of All Trades

 

One thing I got from my dad was the Do-it-Yourself gene. For some reason my dad always thought that he was capable of doing on his own, what professionals are paid to do. Like the time he decided that removing a lilac bush on our property line would be easy. It wasn't. After hacking at the thing for what seemed like an hour, he talked a neighbor into tying a rope around the rear bumper of his car and then tying the other end around the bush. When all was ready the car jerked forward, and the rope became taut as it strained to pull out the bush. A loud metallic sound signaled the bumper ripping off the car while the shrub shook a little and then stood right back up. I don't remember how he finally got that thing out of the ground because we kids scattered as curses filled the air. I've faired a little better with my DIY efforts. Most have turned out okay, other than the one inch gap at the bottom of my tenant's back door. I never was very skilled with a circular saw. I mis-measured and cut the door too short. No way was I going to spend money on a new door, so I just told Dennis that it was for ventilation.

Six years ago Mark bought an antique medicine cabinet. It was perfect for our hundred year old bathroom. At some point, somebody had removed the original cabinet and put up a large mirror over the hole in the wall. I'm sure they thought it looked great, but we did not and wanted the vintage look. So a year later I installed the new vintage cabinet. It did not quite fit the hole left by the old original cabinet, but I promised Mark that I'd fix that with some tile to fill in around the new one. Now, five years later, I have finally got around to starting that job. On Saturday, after gathering all the tools I needed and the tiles, I began. So far I have managed to affix two tiles that immediately began to slide down the wall. I used tape to keep them up along with a couple of more dabs of tile glue and now have to wait until they dry and bond to the wall before I go any further.....

...At least that's what I'm telling myself.