Zen & the Art of Bathroom Renovations
July 5, 2005I don’t know what it is but, whilst I was recently renovating our bathroom, I’ve been in a particularly reflective mood. Pirsig wrote a whole book about his reflections on motorcycles — I’m going to go with the abridged version.
Here’s a summary of my wanderings and lessons learned (top 20, in no particular order) …
- If your wife/partner buys new towels — RUN!
- I definitely chose the right vocation
- I was not cut out to be a tradesman (plumber, tiler, etc.)
- Tiling is BAD for knees
- I worry about things WAY too much before they happen (if at all)
- Doing some physical work for a change is energizing
- Doing some physical work for a change is tiring
- The Hardware shop can be your best friend (or worst enemy)
- If you’ve come up with a budget - double it
- Putting together flat-packed furniture is NOT as bad as everyone makes out
- There is personal satisfaction at the end of the project
- I’m either persistent or stubborn (or combination thereof)
- Don’t be too proud to call in the experts when needed
- I don’t look good with a beard — and it’s too itchy anyway
- Getting an early start is a must. Motivation is a function of the time.
- I achieve 80% of the work in the first 20% of time (refer above)
- Taking your frustrations out on others (particularly the kids) does NOT help
- You need the right tools for the right job
- Despite my shortfalls, I do a damn good job
- Things always turn out in the end — even if they are different from your expectations
Renovating!
July 4, 2005I’ve been off-line for a couple of days. I’m doing renovations to our bathroom … please somebody remind me why I thought this would be a good idea! I’ll be back into it shortly (barring no further bathroom disasters).
