Tuesday, November 30, 2010

Home Improvement for the Holidays

During the holidays, home improvement becomes a family affair, and I can't tell you how cool this is. Things that I've put off doing because I am totally clueless (which pretty much includes everything) get finished and things that are broken get fixed, especially electronic items. Yet another reason to wish that our family would visit more often, but don't get me started.

First off, the FEBP, which is moving at a snail's pace. Electrical work just scares me, though guys like JH or PR are fearless when it comes to wires. JH came over and did an amazing job of wiring up most of the front door lights, but there was still the issue of the overhead light and the switch.

Well, PR looked at it and said, "Let's get to work." My first reaction was to think, "Shouldn't we put it off until next year?" The first thing to do was to get the proper tools, which included wire cutting accessories and assorted pliers. Once these were procured, PR went to work, and didn't stop or hesitate until the job was done. It was pretty amazing to watch, and not a hint of doubt or trepidation. He managed to fish the wired through a small hole to hook up the overhead light, and replaced the switch box to accommodate an additional switch. When I looked at all those wires coming out of the wall, I almost fainted.

PR also fixed the seal on the front door, and then RR took a look at our TV, which no longer works because it fell of the shelf and hit the floor like a rock. RR wanted examine it, so he took the thing apart and figured out what might be the problem. Talk about going for it, he just dismantled the TV and had a good look, no hesitation. He thought it might need a new circuit board, and said he might even have on at home and would bring it the next time they visited. I can tell you one thing, the TV will not be fixed (at least not by me) by the next time they visit. Pretty impressive stuff.

Sometimes I think we should have a TV show, The Family Home Improvement Show. I would simply be a clueless observer, of course.

Until the next time, thanks for reading.

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