WEEPING TOILET

Apartment living is freeing to my soul because I have no responsibility for maintenance.  (Make a note that this does not mean I’m irresponsible.)  

Before we moved, I paid a handyman to fix the toilet.  He replaced the flapper.  Didn’t work.  So I hired a real plumber.  He explained to me that the toilet was “weeping,” which meant it was dripping slowly, and you’d hear it fill up at odd times for no apparent reason.  (And all this time I thought we had haints.)   He replaced the sealant ring and all was well, except that my wallet was now weeping.

Next I needed a new ballast for one of my fluorescent lights.  (My son was real impressed that I knew that word “ballast.”)  My handyman fixed it by replacing the bulbs.  I knew that wouldn’t work, but he said it might, and I said we’d see about that.  Yep.  He had to return to replace the ballast.

When we moved into the apartment, I looked for something that needed fixing just so I could call maintenance and watch someone fix something for free.  Can you believe it?  There was a weeping toilet and a light that needed a new ballast.  The maintenance man replaced the fluorescent bulbs and the toilet flapper.  He said he’d come back if that didn’t work.  I looked at him and didn’t say a thing. 

Not my problem any more.  They can come back as much as they want.  I don’t have to pay for it.  I don’t have to schedule it.  I don’t even have to be here.  And they’ll eventually get it right.