Friday, January 18, 2013

What Engineer's Do for Fun in the Morning

So guess what exciting and glamorous activity I'm doing this morning, while writing this blog? Yup, trying to help my youngest (who by the way no longer wants to be called “Yellowboy” (you can check out the nickname tab above to find out why it's his (FORMER) perfect name) with his math homework. I, a former teacher of 7th grade (his grade) know nothing, and my ways of getting the answer are WRONG, they must be obtained only by Mrs. BestTeacherI'veEverHad's method. Don't get me wrong, she is wonderful, and the reason he's taking high school algebra already. But it's a frustrating endeavor... 

Engineers on the other hand get to be heroes in the morning. He gets up, announces, “The hot water faucet won't turn off in our bathroom. I'm going to shut off the water to that sink until I can deal with it.” Ok, no problem. Well, yes there was. The thingamajig that turns off the water is no longer functioning, so he has to turn off the water to the whole house to remove the sink. Sigh. So many projects, so little time.

Here comes the hero part. The Engineer returns from his man-cave, his storage area of “this might be useful someday”. Half of our basement is this category. I'd take a picture, but he doesn't want me to. Just imagine a room 15x20, full of shelves, with boxes with labels like, “Pin-ball machine parts”, “broken appliances with good motors”, “old computer fans”...you can't really walk in there anymore. It's STUFFED. But! He returns from there with a BRAND NEW FAUCET that our former neighbor gave us. (Neighbor got rid of a lot of stuff that is now in the man-cave.) 

So The Engineer installs the new faucet, and we once again have water in the whole house and a working sink. He still leaves for work at 8:00. My hero.

I also have a bubble-wrap update. Some were wondering if it's working. Here's evidence: Note the ice making a backwards L shape where there is no bubble wrap.




I asked why he didn't cover the other part since we're not using that door. “I ran out.” This from the man who has reams of pink bubble wrap (remember how he saves all packing materials?) “Honey, we have lots of pink we could use. “I will NOT put pink bubble wrap on that door. I guess even eccentric engineers have their limits to how crazy they'll go...I just didn't know his line was pink. 

 ~Tina

11 comments:

Alex J. Cavanaugh said...

That's right, man - draw the line at pink bubble wrap!
I am the opposite. I hoard nothing.

JoJo said...

Pink bubble wrap would look nice for contrast! lol I had a math teacher who failed my homework assignment b/c I used a different method (taught to me by an engineer cousin when my mom raced me over there for help at 9 pm that night). The teacher insisted I use HIS way, which I didn't understand.

D.G. Hudson said...

I agree, my line is pink, too. Not my colour and don't like it around me.

However, it appears that bubble wrap works very well.

Shaharizan Perez said...

*giggles*

He fixed the sink before 8 am? Wow, that is a superhero!

I enjoyed reading this post. I don't know too many engineers so your posts give me a little insight into their personalities. Awesome post!

Brian Miller said...

woohoo way to rock it engineer....it is def helpful to have a handy man around...smiles.

Tonja Drecker said...

This is SOOOOO typical! I have one of those engineers too. And that 'this might be useful someday corner'...well, let's just say that yours isn't big yet. Yes, it can get bigger. Be scared ;)

Gina Gao said...

I have had this experience so many times before! I'm pretty glad I have my "things that might be useful" closet.

www.modernworld4.blogspot.com

Anonymous said...

Like Alex, I hoard nothing. Call Goodwill!

Hilary Melton-Butcher said...

Hi Tina .. well your blog title applies today ... hot water fixed and working ... and the window/door nearly so ..

I can understand his collection of fluff ... but would have thought pink bubble wrap wasn't so ghastly?!

I'm trying to cut right back now and get frustrated when I don't have things ... but such is life ... I can borrow if the appropriate people are around ..

Have a good weekend with hotwater .. and a son who no longer has a name .. perhaps algebrason?!

Cheers Hilary

Jo said...

Remind the engineer lots of men are wearing pink uniforms and driving pink vehicles in order to support breast cancer, so pink bubble wrap would be along those lines surely.

Glad you have your hot water, frustrating to manage without it.

Jenny said...

How funny. I love that pink is his kryptonite!