Wet weekend ahead – and that’s just in the house!

19Aug11

We’ve got a tiler at home this week. It’s for the downstairs toilet which has been untouched for 25 years. Yes that’s right, a quarter of a century of rather unpleasant beige flowery tiles! Anyway we’ve bought some lovely black and white marble tiles for the floor and traditional rectangular white ones for the walls, a new toilet and basin. Should look very smart – when it’s done. On Tuesday evening, relaxing after work, we noticed the sound of dripping water coming from the vicinity of the smallest room. Upon investigation, there was water leaking into the cellar and the hall carpet was beginning to feel soggy. The tiler could not be reached but was expected back the next morning so we waited. He failed to appear on Wednesday and when we finally reached him on the phone he promised to bring a plumber with him this morning. The plumber diagnosed a leak at 8.30 this morning as I was wanting to leave for the office but said he could do nothing about it as he was off on holiday at lunchtime. Could we wait a week? The tiler seemed to think this was a good idea. He had other jobs he needed to do anyway. I told the tiler that I thought not. He must locate another plumber and that, if the leak had been upstairs we would have no option. Even though it was downstairs we had the hall woodwork to consider plus the carpet, etc. The tiler looked at the plumber and said, “Perhaps we’d better ring the husband?”

Readers, I don’t want to sound like a ranting feminist but there are times when, as a woman, one has to weigh up how to deal with this sort of situation. Very calmly is best I find. I told the tiler to find another plumber who could deal with the leak today then left for work, after making them both cups of tea of course. On the way to work I called ”the husband” to make sure he agreed that to live with a leak, no downstairs loo and a complete mess in the hall for a week was not really an option. I didn’t want him to undermine the little woman when he was called by the men!

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