As I have written in the past, I am a glutton for home improvement projects. Give me the opportunity to think of something to do and I have a million things that I want to get done. The problem with having so many things un-started or half-finished, is that my house has taken on a semblance of being one purchase away from making me a confirmed hoarder.
Yeah it’s that serious. Over the past couple of years, I have done some significant things to the exterior of my house. But now, I have to get off the dime. It’s time for the interior.
I have a significant reason for making this confession. I want to host Thanksgiving dinner this year. And to do that, my basement and first floor have to be presentable for guests. Especially since sitting in the middle of my living room at the moment is a gigantic tub.
Somehow my son managed to put a crack in the existing fiberglass tub, then proceeded to use some sealing product to try to fix the hole, but in the end it didn’t work. Since that was predominantly his bathroom, I had no clue there was a problem. It wasn’t until my cabinet in the basement, which had a ton of stuff inside, became wet that I learned the truth.
I found a replacement tub, but because I want to save the tiles around the current tub, I have to chisel them off the wall. Thus the new tub has not been installed. A friend told me about using Red Devil clear acrylic caulk on that crack and it worked. It’s been working for a couple of years now. But when failure comes, I’ll be in big trouble.
I know what a lot of you are thinking … just demo the tiles off! But the decorative tiles I have are difficult/impossible to find. Currently my spirit says I can do it. Thanksgiving is eight months away, so I have a little bit of lead time. But we know what happens with time. It flies!
Right now I have an “accountability call” that I am on every Monday evening. There is someone I know who is in a similar conundrum across the country. And we both are holding one another accountable for the progress we are making. It’s an honor system. At the same time it’s a loving, caring and non-judgmental way to report to each other our progress and to hold ourselves responsible for any lack thereof.
I love doing a lot of home repairs myself. However, my personal moniker is “that lazy old handywoman.” Calling in the professionals would mean I can get everything done “fast and a hurry.” But that also comes with a price tag that I may not be able to afford. So I’m going to balance what the professional must do with the speediness of what I can do.
Hopefully I can update you folks every six weeks or so with the progress I’m making. Feel free when you see me to ask if that tub is out the living room. If I hold my head down in shame, you’ll know the answer. But if it’s installed, I’ll whip out my phone and show you a picture.
Lastly, the Repair Cafe last Saturday was a big hit. I am grateful to each and every one of you who read the article and came out to support that wonderful event. I’ll be there again in March, cuz I have a vintage deep fryer that I need somebody to take a look at.