Inertia

Inertia: 1. Resistance or disinclination to motion, action, or change.  2. The tendency of a body at rest to remain at rest...

This body has spent too much of the last few months sitting around.  It started as a way to avoid having to constantly step over my dog, who was losing her eyesight.  Then I began to worry about her health, which, combined with all the idleness, started to make me feel depressed.  At the same time, my job was growing more and more stressful.  And my dog's kidney issues continued to worsen, and she had to get up more frequently each night.  Eventually, I was lucky if I could sleep for two hours continuously, and I became very sleep deprived.  I didn't have the energy or brain power to do much of anything except make it through the workday and collapse at home.

As you may have guessed from my use of past tense, my dog is gone.  She died on April 20.

I noticed on a Thursday evening that she had gone completely blind (suddenly, as with most of her health changes).  She was walking into walls, she couldn't find her way around, she couldn't find her food unless I put her nose in the bowl.  I wasn't sure if it was temporary blindness caused by a seizure, or if she'd lost the last of her sight.  Over the weekend, it became clear that it was the latter.  It was time for me to make that most difficult of choices - to let her go.

I had to be at work Monday, so I arranged to take Tuesday off and made an appointment with the vet.  I came home to check on her at lunchtime; she was doing okay.  I refilled her water bowl, which she had knocked over, gave her a glob of peanut butter and said my usual goodbye.  I had to get back to work.

When I came home later that afternoon, I found her lying dead in her bed.

Though of course I sat on the floor and sobbed over her little body, I also felt I'd been given a reprieve.  It was as though she had done one final kindness for me, sparing me the trauma of taking her in for euthanasia.

I'm dealing with the loss much better than I thought I would, probably because of the circumstances.  I am sad and I miss her... but if I'd had to take her to the vet, it would have ripped my heart out.  As these things go, we were both fortunate.

I caught up on sleep, and finally feeling clear-headed, I talked to my boss to try to address some of the issues that are making my job stressful.  I think there will be some positive changes.

And now, there are many other changes I want to make in my life... if I can just overcome the inertia and get moving.

We Now Interrupt This Hiatus...

for a venting of frustration.

The plan was to be on hiatus until I had something good to post about, but I really need to vent today.

Why is my license plate mangled and sitting on the ground?  Because someone knocked it off my car.

Someone who ran a stop sign and WHAM! into his car I crashed. I've long believed that too many people think STOP means Slightly Tap On Pedal.  This idiot didn't even do that.

It could have been a lot worse. No one was hurt. My car wasn't heavily damaged. The collision was clearly his fault, and his insurance should pay to repair my car.

What I'm really angry about is that he ruined my perfect driving record. In 24 years of driving, I had never been in a collision.  TWENTY-FOUR YEARS.  That is a "never" I can never get back.

Halloween 2014: Chef

Life is rather somber and stressful these days, and I wasn't able to muster my usual enthusiasm for Halloween.  I did at least manage to dress up for work.  I reused a costume from a few years ago: myself as a chef.  This is what I'd look like if I ever tried to actually cook anything, complete with holes burned in my clothes and soot on my face.

Why am I holding a little golden trophy?
There was recently a chili cook-off at my office.  The day before the cook-off deadline, the organizers encouraged entries for vegetarian chili because there was only one entry.  Now, normally the idea of me entering a cooking contest would be utterly ridiculous.  I can barely boil water.  But I can make one thing worth eating, and it happens to be vegetarian chili... so I decided to participate.  I was absolutely gobsmacked when I won the trophy for Best Vegetarian Chili.

So here you have essentially the worst cook on the planet holding her cooking contest trophy.  Too weird.

Bathroom Remodel: New Shower Faucet

My old three-handle compression faucet has been replaced with a one-handle ceramic disc faucet. No more fighting with obnoxious handles! Yay! :)

I started with hard-to-turn handles that I hated:

The plumber replaced the valve after cutting a large hole in the wall similar to this:

Then he installed the new handle. I thought I'd end up with the round faucet escutcheon layered over a remodel plate similar to this:

But the plumber was able to make adjustments to allow room for the oval escutcheon/cover plate which could be used on its own.

I think it looks less silly than the layered escutcheons. What really matters, though, is that I can turn the handle with the slightest effort. :D

Having the faucet replaced was a nerve-wracking enterprise. I was afraid tiles would crack or fall off when the plumber cut into the wall, especially after he pointed out that some of the tiles were loose. It would be impossible to find exact replacements for 40-year-old tiles. Also, I had no idea what he might find when he opened the wall, though I was certain he would find at least one oddity. I just hoped it would not be too serious an impediment.

When he got to work, there were loud, scary rotary tool cutting sounds accompanied by the occasional sound of something falling. Then there was the even louder reciprocating saw which seemed to make the whole house vibrate. Then there was the sound of the torch igniting. When the plumber finally emerged from the bathroom about an hour later, I was almost afraid to go in and look. :P

Whew! Everything looked great! No cracked tiles and very neat work on the installation. :D

So what oddities did he find? There was a weirdly placed stud that he had to cut away (thus the reciprocating saw.) But even stranger -- the main water line and the water heater are in the basement, but the shower plumbing does not come up from the floor. It comes down from above. :/

Overall, converting an old three-handle faucet is not an inexpensive project. I paid $178 for the faucet kit, $58 for the cover plate, and $500 for the plumber to do the work. But I believe it will be worth the money. I use the shower every day, and I was very, VERY tired of fighting with the difficult old handles.

New Faucet Delayed

Yesterday was supposed to be New Faucet Day. Alas, the plumber had major "unforeseen circumstances" that delayed him. Three hours after my appointment time, his office called to see if we could reschedule. :( GRRR.

I'd already planned to take the day off work due to construction at the office. If I'd taken the day just for the plumber, I would have been really annoyed.

I made use of the time by clearing items out of the bathroom cabinet in preparation for replacing the vanity and by reorganizing the linen closet to give the items a new home. I want to paint the bathroom, but I'm not sure my pet circumstances will allow it. Clingy blind dog + paint in a 3' x 5' space = disaster waiting to happen. :P

Now I'm off to argue with the faucet handles to see if I can convince them to give me water of a comfortable temperature. And I was so looking forward to a cooperative shower experience today. Sigh.

Bathroom Remodel: Shower Faucet

My bathroom remodel begins in five days! :D Hooray!

I'm starting big with the most complicated, most expensive, most functionally significant portion of the remodel -- replacing the shower faucet. As I mentioned in a previous post, the tub/shower handles have been a real pain for some time. They are hard to turn, and it's difficult to make small adjustments so that the water isn't too cold or too hot (and that's when the cold water isn't turning itself off). I have previously replaced the faucet stems, but it was only a temporary fix because they wore out after a couple of years.  The long-term solution is to replace the valve inside the wall.  For that, I need a plumber... and that's why this will be the most expensive portion of the remodel.

Replacing the valve will require cutting a sizable hole in the wall, something like this: 

From The Family Handyman

I do NOT want to replace the tile, so I'll need a large plate (escutcheon) to cover the hole, something like this:

From The Family Handyman

Not ideal, but I can live with it. My main concern is that there is little room for a cover plate because the handle and tub spout are very close together.

By the way, that's not mold (ick!), it's cracked grout.

I had to order everything, so I wasn't able to measure the tub spouts or see the finishes. I ordered two faucet kits and three cover plates in the hopes that some combination of them will work.

Moen Brantford

Pegasus Estates

Premier, Cleveland Faucet, and Lasco cover plates

It turns out that all the finishes are quite similar.

Moen Brantford handle with Cleveland Faucet cover plate

Pegasus Estates handle with Lasco cover plate

Pegasus Estates handle with Premier cover plate

I would be okay with any of the combinations, I think. The real joy will be having a shower that I don't have to fight with. :P

Inexpensive Craft Room Storage

Just a quick post to share a couple of ideas for inexpensive craft room storage.

I wanted to rescue my wrapping paper and rolls of leftover wallpaper from the awkward back corner of the closet, but I did not want to pay big bucks for specialized storage boxes. I discovered a much less expensive solution in these $2 plastic bag dispensers from Ikea. They are perfect for rolls of paper. I attached four to a scrap of wood and then screwed the wood into the wall studs so it can hold some weight.

For storing craft paints and glues, spice racks are a great solution. They're readily available at thrift stores for just a few dollars. I have two that I painted and decoupaged with Halloween papers just for fun.