Home Improvement

The BBW has a confession to make: I live in an old house, so something always needs to be fixed and I love DIY!  Unfortunately, I am the Queen of Unfinished DIY projects...And I am confessing this now in case you hear the husband complaining about not being able to use the bathroom.

This latest DIY bender started when I broke my toilet seat back in April (not by sitting on it), but it could not be fixed so I went to my local Home Depot to buy a replacement.  Since it was late and I was on my own, my plan was to go in, find the replacement, jump on line to pay, and badda-bing, ten minutes later I would be on my way.

Except, as everyone knows, there is no such thing as a quick trip to the hardware store. 



I walked in with my broken seat in a bag under my arm and wandered the aisles for about five minutes until I found the right section.  Then I stood transfixed by a wall of toilet seats and too many choices--did I want a cheap plastic seat to replace the cheap plastic seat I was toting or did I want a sturdier wooden seat?  Did I want to stick with white or did I want something in ecru or powder blue?  And what exactly is the difference between a $7 seat and a $47 seat? 

After about five more minutes, I made my selection (white, wooden, $12) and searched for someone in an orange apron to tell me if I had the right sized replacement.  And while searching for one of those rare beings (because when you need one, they are like the white buffalo), I had to walk by all of the various toilet units, bathroom vanities, and faucet fixtures, so you can guess how excited I was getting.  Anywho, ten minutes later when I finally found a clerk and she answered my question, the announcement came that the store was about to close, so I headed to the register and went on my merry way.

Of course, after I replaced the toilet seat with no problems, the rest of my bathroom began to fall apart.  And as the husband is not the least bit interested in fixing anything other than something to eat, I am now re-grouting the tile, re-caulking the tub, replacing the shower head, fixing the leaking faucet, and making plans for my third trip to Home Depot in three days.  Oh, and since I am playing Ms. Fix-It, wouldn't it be fun to play Martha Stewart and redecorate as well?  So I might buy a can or two of paint...Do you see where this is going?!???  All because of a stupid toilet seat. 

Let's just hope that the bathroom fares better than all of the other unfinished DIY projects around the house.  Sure, I am good with simple jobs like replacing light fixtures and unclogging the bathroom sink.  But there is a reason why I am re-caulking the tub after having attempted this two years ago, after another failed attempt a few years earlier. 

But this time will be different.

So please ignore the fact that there is no working overhead light in my bedroom; or that there are only three blades in the ceiling fan in my dining room; or that the doors on my kitchen cabinets don't work (oh wait, that was the husband, not me).  And I promise that after I finish the bathroom, I will not loiter in the aisles of hardware stores thinking up reasons to buy new tools.  And most of all, I promise not to start another project that I cannot finish.

But, I've started gardening again, so this is going to be a long summer...