Well that sums up my past week! No kidding.
Last week, my dining room table collapsed. No kitties were underneath at the time, so no injuries to living, breathing mammals to report. The table contents, however, arranged itself in various forms of disarray and destruction on the floor post collapse, complete with Un-Episcopal sentences proclaimed from the owner. I went to Ikea the next day and purchased a table "kit." They delivered it the next day and I spent Saturday afternoon putting it together. It's actually very sleek and elegant looking, but very simple design: a top and four legs, black wood. No "foot rests" or bars that go lengthwise underneath. I wanted something that would discourage toe stubbing while seated at the table, space that I could also slide boxes underneath and not show on the outside. Did that make sense? Anyway, it's very pretty and it was fun to put together.
The day before the table collapse, the wiggling unstable chairs (that go with the table) I put in the kitchen so I could Super Glue back together. After glue failure I decided that the chairs (which have been used also as ladders through the years) should go live with Jesus, or at least become a part of the "Red Green" set in Canada. What do you think? A Ikea I got matching simple, black wood chairs with a white cushion that I think go very nicely with the table. I haven't put those together yet though. I figure when guests come, they can put their own chairs together as they arrive. Make them work for their dinner!
I have several chunky shelves I installed a few months ago. When they are against the wall, they look as if they are hanging there in mid wall. There is a curved metal rod that gets screwed to the wall, then the shelf "hooks" onto the rod. The shelf packaging said the weight limit is 75lbs......pretty good, eh? Well the problem is it's "top heavy" or front heavy. If you put stuff too close to the front of the shelf, the whole thing falls down. I would like to put more books up, and maybe some bins that I have that are taking up space on the floor. There's "something" in the air. These shelves have been falling down several times this weekend, scattering cats to the four corners of the house. So I have some "decorative" shelf brackets that I screwed into the wall to support the shelves. I won't put anything small on these shelves, though. I had my Cornell Clock Tower clock (complete with pumpkin on top.) The clock itself was intact, but it was sans pumpkin. I was able to glue the pumpkin back on, but some pieces must have shattered, because I can't get it to look straight. You know, if I had taken it to a repair place out here in Minnesota and asked them to glue the pumpkin on top of the clock tower, I would get some pretty weird looks! LOL.
This morning, the first little man to come over was the electrician. I needed him to change the bulbs of the fixture that's on the kitchen celling. If it were a basic small fixture, I could do it myself, but the cover of this thing is 4 foot by 3 foot long. The little man (Max) changed the long tubular bulbs and replaced the cover. While he was here, I had him change the bulbs that are also in the kitchen celling, but are recessed, so they are hard to reach. In December (remember that Aunt Susan??????????) I tried changing the bulbs myself using a pole. The bulb shattered and fell all over the kitchen and living room floor. Well, today Max changed the bulbs and the same thing happened to him and he was on a ladder. Thank God nothing went into his face. But I did have to vacuum tiny shattered pieces of blight bulb. He had to run to the store to get a replacement. Now the bulbs are all in place and "...Let there be LIGHT..."
The next little man to come over was John, the Air Conditioning man. He was very nice and gave me a good education on my AC/heating unit. He said that AC's were not built to be at 60 the way I "like" it, but he could fix it, add a part so that it won't tax the unit too severely, making my Chiarian demands easier on the AC. The part won't be in until next week, John will be back then. I told him about my carbon monoxide poisoning in November. We talked about that for about 30 minutes. He took me outside and we cleaned the air intake valve/screen with a toothbrush. It was completely covered with dirt and grime. He said my AC/heater would work better now. I didn't know I had to even DO that.....and I've been in this place for three years. He said I should clean the intake screen twice a year. He laughed when I told him all my guests require scarves and blankets.
The next little man should be here in about 15 minutes. My shower is leaking. Stay tuned. Pray nothing else collapses in my place!
Shower fixed, TV fixed, table fixed, lightbulbs fixed, shelves fixed...life is good.
