MS. FIT-IT

I was in the kitchen, ready to start dinner when I turned the water on to wash my hands. “Oh, no!”

Water was leaking from the faucet and spilling all over the counter-top. I quickly shut the water off and checked the long neck of the faucet where I could see an inch long crack.

“The kitchen faucet is broken!” I called to my husband Steven.

Steven came into the kitchen where I was standing in front of the sink pointing to the crack.

He reached over and turned the faucet on and watched as water sprayed from the crack and quickly covered the counter-top. Shutting it off he looked over at me and nodded. “Yup. It’s broken.”

“So how do we fix it?” I leaned against the counter.

“We buy a new faucet, call a plumber and see when they can get here to install it.”

“Okay, so how long do you think that would be?”

Steven shrugged his shoulders. “Could be a few days or weeks, depending on how busy the plumber is.”

“Weeks!” I looked around the kitchen. “How am I suppose to get meals ready without a sink?”

“I could stop by Lowe’s after work tomorrow and get some tape to fix it.”

“Okay, thanks.”

But after dinner, as I looked at all the dirty dishes stacked in the sink needing to be rinsed off before putting them in the dishwasher, I couldn’t wait until tomorrow.

“I’ll be back in a minute!” I called as I reached for my purse and car keys.

Twenty minutes later my son Alex met me at the front door. “Where did you go?”

I held up my bag from Lowe’s. “I’m going to fix the faucet myself!”

Alex looked doubtful. “Didn’t Dad say he’d fix it tomorrow?”

I pointed to the sink filled with dishes. “I didn’t want to wait until tomorrow.” I pulled the Flex Tape out of the bag and placed it on the counter-top before throwing the bag in the trash. Opening the drawer I grabbed a pair of scissors and began cutting open the tape. “I went to the plumbing section and looked around at all my options and this one seemed the best.” Cutting off an inch wide strip I peeled the protective sheet off and began wrapping it around the faucet. “It says it’s waterproof and stops leaks on hoses so I figured it would work on this too.”

I cut another strip and wrapped it around the faucet next to the first one. “Just to be on the safe side.” Double checking to see that it was on tightly I looked over at Alex before slowly turning the water on.

Alex and I watched to see if any water was coming out. “It’s holding.” I said as I turned the water on full force.

I held my breath as I watched the faucet. After a few seconds when it was still holding I turned the water off and looked over at Alex. “I fixed it!”

Alex was nodding his head. “You did.”

I put my hands on my hips and looked around the room. “What else needs fixing around here?”

Alex started to laugh. “You know you fixed it with tape, right?”

“Not right now.” I held up my hand to stop him from continuing. “I’m still enjoying my feeling of accomplishment.”

Steven came into the kitchen. “What have you two been up to?”

I pointed to the faucet. “I fixed the sink!”

Steven reached over and turned the facet on. “Hey, no leaks. Good job!”

I smiled as he turned the water off. “I’m thinking maybe I should get a tool belt.”

“Hey, I’d be glad to get you a tool belt.”

“Really?”

“Sure. But you know when you get a tool belt it comes with a list of projects that need to be done.”

I thought about that for a moment. “You know, on second thought I think I’ll take a pass on the tool belt right now.”