Tag Archives: Plumbing

Test Results Pending… Floors Not So Much

09 Thursday Apr 2026

Posted by in Family, Boy Scouts, Retirement, Life

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I’ve got a couple of updates since the last round of chaos, and like everything else lately, it’s a mix of “well, that’s good news” and “you’ve got to be kidding me.”

First off, I saw a post from my doctor’s office saying they plan to reopen on Monday. Now, I’ll be honest—I don’t know how they’re going to be mentally ready for that. After everything that’s happened, I can’t imagine just flipping the sign back to “Open” and jumping right back into caring for patients like nothing ever happened.

I do have some test results I need to get, but at this point, I’m not too worried about them. I could call, but something tells me they’re going to be completely overwhelmed. Phones are ringing off the hook, patients are trying to reschedule, and emotions are still running high. I think I’ll give them a few days. If they call me, great. If not, I’ll check in later when things settle down—at least a little.

They also mentioned they’re looking for another doctor to take over the practice. That could take some time, and honestly, who knows how that’s all going to play out. But I’ve got a backup plan. There’s another doctor I’ve seen before, someone I actually know pretty well outside of the office. We crossed paths a lot through Scouts—he was a scoutmaster in another district—and we’ve stayed in touch over the years. We’re even friends on Facebook, so he’s already got a front-row seat to my “medical adventures” without ever opening a chart. If things go south with my current doctor’s office, I know where my records will be heading.

Meanwhile, over at my son’s house, the saga continues.

The water mitigation team came back today to check on the fans and dehumidifiers. They went around testing the walls and floors for moisture. The good news? The walls are drying out just like they should.

The bad news? The floor… not so much.

So tomorrow, they’re coming back to start tearing up the flooring so the slab can dry out properly. Nothing says “progress” quite like ripping out perfectly good flooring. They’re also planning to remove a few of the fans from the bathroom, which should at least lower the noise level from “airport runway” down to “only mildly annoying.”

It’s been quite the adventure so far—and we’re not even close to the end.

Once everything is dry enough, they’ll move on to the restoration phase. That’s the part my son is really looking forward to… mainly because it means we’re finally heading in the direction of “normal.” He’s also hoping that by tomorrow evening—or at least by Saturday—most of the fans will be gone. I think we’re all looking forward to that.

Of course, my wife has asked me more than once if there was anything that could have been done to prevent all of this.

Short answer? No.

Long answer? Still no… unless you want to hop in a time machine and have a conversation with the original plumbers. It could’ve been a weak solder joint, a slight shift in the slab, or something else entirely hidden beneath the surface. Without tearing everything apart beforehand—or having some kind of superpower X-ray vision—there’s just no way to know. Sometimes things just fail, and you deal with them when they do.

And speaking of dealing with it, tomorrow my son has somewhere he needs to be, so he won’t be around to let the mitigation team in.

Which means… You guessed it… I’ll be making the 45-minute drive.

And you know what? I don’t mind one bit.

Because at the end of the day, this whole mess—doctor’s offices, test results, torn-up floors, and all—is just part of life. Messy, unpredictable, sometimes frustrating… but it also gives us chances to show up for each other.

Even if it means driving 45 minutes just to let someone in the door.

And honestly… compared to everything else going on, that’s the easy part.

From Handy Man to Recliner Champion

05 Sunday Apr 2026

Posted by in Family, Life, Uncategorized

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The beginning of my Easter weekend started out simple enough—help my son check on a leak in his slab.

Now, when someone says “just come take a look,” you picture a quick in-and-out job. Maybe a loose-fitting, maybe something obvious. Ten minutes, tops. You feel confident. Capable. Like a man who knows where his flashlight is.

What you don’t expect… is a full-blown plumbing adventure.

Since I was only supposed to be looking for a leak, I made the brilliant decision to leave all my tools at home. Normally, they live in my truck, but since I recently had some body work done, everything got unloaded—and apparently, my motivation to reload it went with it.

That decision came back to haunt me almost immediately.

Before heading to my son’s house, I had already been given my “honey-do” list for the day. My wife wanted a new overhead kitchen light installed and the handrails painted before our Easter guests arrived. So, naturally, I thought, “Let me just swing by, find this leak real quick, and get back home.”

Famous last words.

I picked up the light and paint, called my son, and headed over. When I got there, I grabbed the one and only tool I thought I’d need… my flashlight.

That flashlight and I were about to be very disappointed.

When I walked in, I found my son wrestling with a toilet. Not just any toilet—this was one of those “engineered by someone who hates plumbers” models. You know the kind. The connections are hidden, your hands don’t fit, and nothing is where it should be.

He was trying to replace the flush valve, and what should have been a simple job turned into a puzzle designed by a madman. You couldn’t even get your hand behind the tank to reach the nut. At one point, I ended up breaking the old valve just to get it out… which is always a confidence booster.

Eventually, he told me he had it under control, so I went back to my original mission: finding the world’s most elusive water leak.

About 15 minutes in, I heard some… colorful language coming from the bathroom.

That’s never a good sign.

Turns out, he was now fighting the same battle we just had—getting the new valve tight enough without being able to reach the nut. And since all my tools were sitting comfortably in my garage at home, we were working with whatever he had lying around… which wasn’t much.

After some struggling, twisting, and me contorting my body into shapes it was never designed to make, we admitted defeat and made a trip to the hardware store for some “special” wrenches.

Spoiler alert: they helped… but not much.

Eventually, through persistence, determination, and probably a little bit of stubbornness, we got the valve installed without leaks. Victory was ours… and so was the back pain.

Once I finally made it back home, it was time to tackle my original assignment. With my wife’s help, I replaced the kitchen light, then moved on to painting the handrails… along with a good portion of my shirt. Apparently, I believe in fully committing to a project—whether I mean to or not.

After finishing up, I rewarded myself the only way I know how: parked in my recliner, heating pad in place, enjoying the first of several cups of coffee like I had just completed a home improvement marathon—which, in my mind, I had.

Later that night, I took my meds as usual and noticed something looked a little off. Turns out, in the chaos of cleaning and rearranging, my medications got mixed up—and instead of taking my sodium bicarbonate, I doubled up on my muscle relaxers.

Now, if you’ve never done that before, let me tell you… It turns your entire next day into a slow-motion documentary.

I spent most of Easter in a fog.

Thankfully, it was a good kind of day. We had family over—my son and his girlfriend, my daughter and future son-in-law, and even her sister. There was food, laughter, and the added bonus of some first-time introductions.

It was one of those moments where everything just feels right.

Even if you’re slightly sedated.

After everyone left, I curled up in my recliner and took a much-needed nap.

Because sometimes the best way to end a long weekend of fixing everything for everyone else…
is to finally sit still long enough to not break anything else.

The Day I Discovered I Had Volunteered 🔧💧

27 Friday Feb 2026

Posted by in Family, Life, Uncategorized

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I took a trip to my parents’ house today, mainly to drop off some coasters I had engraved for a friend. She was going to give them to someone else as a birthday gift. It was supposed to be a simple in-and-out visit — deliver the coasters, say hello, maybe drink a cup of coffee, and head back home.

That was the plan anyway.

As soon as I walked in, Mom informed me she had left the house a mess because she’d been getting ready for my project. That was the moment I discovered I had apparently volunteered to install an instant water heater under the kitchen sink.

This was news to me.

Mom had already emptied the cabinet so I could have “easy access” to the plumbing. Nothing makes a job more official than walking in and finding the workspace already prepared. At that point, backing out wasn’t really an option — not without looking like a terrible son.

Dad and I had talked about the heater during a previous visit, but I had assumed my younger brother would be the one helping with the installation. Somewhere in the conversation timeline, it had been decided my brother wouldn’t be back for a couple of weeks, and I had mentioned that I’d probably come sooner.

Apparently, that counted as volunteering.

If you read my earlier story about the doorbell, this was more of the same. It involved an 86-year-old man explaining how something ought to be hooked up while I tried to explain how it actually needed to be hooked up. Arguments ensued. Voices got louder. Meanwhile, Mom sat in the other room working on a puzzle and laughing at the whole situation.

Honestly, it instantly brought back memories of my childhood — especially those times when Dad tried to teach me how to do something, and I didn’t fully understand. Back then, tempers flared a lot quicker. I was a hardheaded young man, and he was trying to explain things in his own way.

Those arguments used to feel different. Back then, it was more like, “I’m going to prove you wrong no matter what.” There was frustration on both sides — and probably a fair amount of stubbornness, especially on mine.

Now that I’m older, I understand something I didn’t back then: raising his voice was just Dad’s way of explaining things. He wasn’t angry or trying to intimidate me — he just wanted me to understand. Today, I could hear the frustration in his voice as he tried to explain how he thought the plumbing should work, and for the first time in my life, I was the patient one.

Eventually, he understood how everything fit together. It took a little while — and I’ll admit, I know exactly where my hardheadedness comes from. As my son likes to remind me, “The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree.”

He’s absolutely right. 🍎

After we finished the plumbing project, we spent the rest of the afternoon just sitting and talking — remembering stories from when I was growing up and the times we spent together as a family. We worked hard back then doing what had to be done to live the life we had chosen, but looking back now, it was worth every bit of it.

Days like today remind me how valuable this time really is. Whether it’s fixing a doorbell, installing an instant water heater, or just sitting in the living room talking about the old days, these are the moments that stay with you.

Because one day there won’t be projects waiting for me when I walk through that door, and there won’t be long conversations about the past.

And that’s why even the jobs I didn’t know I volunteered for turn out to be time well spent. ❤️

The Day Febreze Became a Household MVP

17 Tuesday Feb 2026

Posted by in Fishing, Kayaking, Life, Nature, Retirement, Uncategorized, Weather

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Four a.m. came early this morning… but who am I kidding? Four a.m. always comes early. I’m convinced 4 a.m. wakes up feeling productive and personally offended that I don’t.

The only reason I willingly get up at that hour is Bible study. Otherwise, if you see me awake at 4 a.m., something has gone terribly wrong — like I heard a strange noise, or I fell asleep at 7 p.m. and woke up confused and slightly offended.

Like usual, I sat there drinking my coffee while reading my morning devotion. There’s something peaceful about that quiet time… mostly because nobody else is awake to ask me where anything is.

After that, I went over the material for Bible study so I wouldn’t show up sounding like I just crawled out of a cave. Which, honestly, is exactly what my brain feels like at 4 a.m.

Since retirement, there are only two things that get me out of bed early.
Number one: Bible study.
Number two: Fishing.

Fishing and I haven’t spent much time together this year. I’ve only been once since New Year’s. The weather has been acting like it has a personal problem with me. Too cold. Too rainy. Too windy.

This week, the temperature is perfect… but the wind is blowing 10–15 mph with gusts up to 25 mph. Fishing in a kayak in that wind is less “peaceful day on the water” and more “Lord, if You get me back to the boat ramp, I promise to behave better.”

After Bible study, I met my brother-in-law and one of my fishing buddies for breakfast. Naturally, we talked about fishing. Because if fishermen aren’t fishing, we’re talking about fishing… or buying fishing gear… or trying to explain to our wives why we need more fishing gear.

We talked about kayaks and my plan to buy another one once I can raise the money. I refuse to go into debt for a hobby. I like fishing… but not “eat ramen noodles for six months” fishing.

Around 10 a.m., as I was leaving the restaurant, my wife texted me:
“The water is off.”

Not just our water. About 70% of the city.

That’s not a “someone hit a pipe” situation. That’s a “somebody is having a really bad day at work” situation.

I still had errands to run, so a couple of hours later, I made it home. We had a little water pressure, but not much. I immediately filled the bathtub so we’d have water to flush toilets if this thing dragged on.

Let me just say — that was one of the smartest decisions I made all day.

I called the water company.
They said about six hours.

Six hours came and went… still no water.

I called again.
Same report.
Just a new six-hour timeline.

That’s when you know you’ve entered the “Well… this is my life now” phase.

I have to admit, I was slightly entertained reading Facebook comments. Some folks were VERY upset about not being able to flush toilets and how things were getting… aromatic.

When people start describing their house as aromatic, things have gone off the rails.

Ten hours later, the water finally came fully back on.

The whole thing reminded me of visiting my grandparents when I was younger. They didn’t have indoor plumbing. They had an outhouse. If you had to go, you grabbed your courage and made the trip outside to the little wooden shack out back.

And let me tell you… I can still remember that smell. That smell had layers. History. Personality.

Suddenly, our ten-hour water outage didn’t seem quite so bad.

365 Day Photo Challenge 252/365 “Plumbing Problems”

08 Tuesday Sep 2015

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water-heater-repair-and-replace

I spent the day babysitting my water heater.  It’s a long story so I won’t bore everyone with it but in a nut shell I took multiple trips to the hardware story and still ended up having to replace the heater later this evening.  Once I actually started replacing the heater it didn’t take but a couple of hours from start to finish.  My two daughters and I were able to take hot showers within an hour of turning the gas on.

I don’t profess to be a plumber and I know only enough to do a few fixes around the house.  Nine years ago when my dad and I put this heater in I had the forethought to put in unions in both the hot and cold water lines.  That way when someone had to replace the heater all they would have to do is unscrew the unions, put them on the new heater and screw the unions back together.  It worked like a charm.  Easiest water heater change out that I’ve ever had.

I spent $456, tax and all on this water heater today.  I found out while I was at the supply store that Alagasco, our natural gas supplier, is offering a $350 rebate for anyone replacing a water heater.  I couldn’t print the rebate form fast enough.  When’s the last time you bought a water heater for $10?

“Life Goes On!”