My week...

To say that I've had a busy week would be something of an understatement...

So I won't say that.

I will say that it has been strange, frustrating, and expensive.

First, my van overheated last Saturday - a busted radiator hose - no big deal. I replaced the top radiator hose, filled it up with anti-freeze and went on my way.

Then it happened again - The bottom hose this time. Did it all again.

The next day the van overheated once again. No signs of hose bustage this time, just scalding, noxious, green liquid spewing out of the overflow tank.

A new thermostat has hopefully (please?) fixed the problem for good.

While all that was going on, Stacie and Shelby were having a running argument about drinks getting spilled on the floor of Shelby's room. It went something like this: "Ididnot-youdidtoo-ididnot-youdidtoo" ad infinitum. Ok, there was more, but I tuned it out.

For once, Shelby's protestations of innocence were valid. She hadn't spilled anything in the floor.

But the floor was wet again. I went feeling around the wet spot and traced the dampness back toward the wall.

The wall that adjoins the master bath.

You know where this is going, right?

The baseboard was damp and the wall was too. I felt my way up the wall until I got a point about three feet up - right about where the water pipe connects to the bathtub valve - and came away with two wet gooey handfuls of what used to be drywall material.

Not to mention a large sheet of still intact, bright yellow latex wall paint lying at my feet.

We immediately began to empty her room of everything wet, damp, soggy, musty, moldy or gooey. Including a good sized chunk of wall:



I then got my dad to come over to help me fix the now exposed leaking water pipe.

We should have turned off the water main first.

Yes it did.

Now the carpet has to go too.

In the meantime, Shelby has pretty much moved into B's house as we work to patch, repaint and recarpet her room.




Ah, the joys of home ownership!

In addition, I've had a full workweek, I took Stacie's new car/truck to get its first regularly scheduled service, and we're preparing for VBS at church and my once-a-year acting gig. This year, I'm the prodigal son - someone else gets to be Jesus this time. Of course I'll also be a stand in for any other Biblical characters whose portrayers don't bother to show up.

I'll also serve as the hamburger cook, the trash take-out guy and the 'we need somebody to go get this or do this five minutes ago' guy and probably a couple of other unforeseen roles.

Can you tell that my lovely wife is heading this thing up.

In the spare fifteen minutes I was able to carve out of this train wreck of a week, I went to the library and got some books on computers, music and the book of Ecclesiates. I also re-checked out Jimmy Buffett's 'A Pirate looks at Fifty' which I never finished last time.

With Jimbo's first chapter as inspiration, I've decided to write the story of My Life (in 400 words or less).

I've got a start, but this is not as easy as it sounds. I'll share it with you when I'm done. I'm predicting that I'll come in at somewhere between 398 and 400 words.