I never knew home renovations could be so much
fun! When several panes of glass broke out of one of my bedroom windows, I was dismayed, and intimidated by the process or replacing them. My response to people who said things like,
"Oh, that's easy to fix!" was one of deep cynicism paired with a wish that someone would just make the problem go away. Or, you know, fix it themselves so I didn't have to learn about things like glazing putty and glaziers points and whatnot. Alas, knights in shining armor who happen to fix windows don't come along that often, so after about a week of procrastinating, I finally bit the bullet. Rosie showed me the basics (chisel out old putty, use masking tape to safely retrieve old glass, insert new glass, insert points, add putty, make it pretty, and you're done) and I started in. To my surprise, it was ... fun. Satisfying. Chiseling out the old putty was the most annoying part, but then you get to put in the new, pretty glass, apply putty, and use a putty knife to make the putty smooth and tidy looking. I started to get smug about my putty knife wielding. I started to say things to myself like,
"Take that, previous inept window replacer!" and
"That Bernadette, she's pure magic with a putty knife!" Thankfully I only had a few panes to replace, so I was able to stop before my head got so big it burst. Still, I felt self-satisfied and triumphant the whole rest of the day.
The other big news this week has been the acquisition of my new
little baby netbook, which I have named Belle. I've been wanting one of these for a while, since I discovered exactly how heavy my big-screen laptop was to carry around, and saw the extreme cuteness and littleness of AnniPott's machine. My laptop is aging (rather gracefully, I might add), but just couldn't muster up the necessary wireless reception (Mariah and The Duchess have a very strong wireless signal they're willing to share with their neighbors) to get internet access at my new place. I had been thinking of buying a wireless modem and signing up for my own service, but Sweetness pointed out that it would be cheaper in the long run to buy a computer that could pick up the signal than having another bill to pay every month. This seemed like wisdom to me, so I set aside some of my tax refund and started researching netbooks. I've had it less than a week, but so far I love it. Yes, the screen is tiny too, and it will never be my preferred tool for reading things online, but having internet access at home again is so utterly lovely. Sigh. Such a joy.
While we're talking about happy things, I thought I'd mention how much I'm actually enjoying Theology On Tap this time around. This is because I am no longer in charge. I had been on the planning team (and leading the planning team) for six years, and I thought it was time to step down. My clue was when I kept missing meetings because deep down I just really, really didn't want to go. I didn't want to do it anymore, not on any level, and was finally willing to say that I didn't care if it collapsed without me, I wanted out. And, well, I'm not completely out yet. Somehow I'm still doing the nametags and maintaining the database. However, I have high hopes that either I'll find someone to take my place, or if not I'll leave it up to the planning team to replace me. I'm not the MC anymore, and it's not my job to make sure everything's going smoothly, starting and stopping on time, or any of the million other little things I used to have to take care of. Instead I can sit in the back with my friends and my knitting, and whisper snarky comments to The Thinker or One. For the first time in six years I'm going home from Theology On Tap feeling happy and relaxed, not stressed and drained. It's a very good thing.
Comments (2)
Happy Saint's Day, B.!
Why thank you!