The drain in the sink has come apart.

[OldBaldy1701E]

We live in an apartment. We sent a thing to maintenance. They should be here tomorrow.

Normally, I would just fix it. But, I cannot. I am too fragile and too decrepit to even get the thing into position. Then, to top it off, my husband insinuates that I should not make an attempt because they might come in tomorrow, see my 'jury-rigging' and leave it. The 'rigging' that is already there is why this happened in the first place. I was just trying to get it back together.

It is nice to know that not only am I so useless that I cannot fix a simple drain, but that my husband sees my efforts as half-assed 'jury-rigging' that should be avoided if possible.

I feel great right now. How is everyone else doing?

[SheltieLover]

1. It's not your job to fix the drain

Breathe...deeply.

[OldBaldy1701E]

8. I am trying to. (n/t)

[SheltieLover]

9. ...

[gab13by13]

2. Let them fix it,

The new PVC pipe is easier to install than some of the older drain pipes. If it's at the bottom of the kitchen sink make sure the threads didn't rust away. make them fix it right.

As the Buddhists say, this too will pass.

disclaimer/ one of my sink drains was at such a weird angle that I finally just duct taped it to keep it from coming apart. That was 4 years ago.

I super glued the rod that holds my toilet paper, that was 3 years ago.

Sometimes Jerry-rigging works.

[The Wizard]

3. Fortunately drains aren't under pressure and PVC

works when hand tightened. My hands ain't what they used to be, but I can tighten a drain.

[OldBaldy1701E]

7. It always works as long as you take care of the issue.

I have no idea why he said that. He is not doing well these days either, so maybe this is part of what is going on.

I know I am losing my abilities faster than I can handle it.

[chowmama]

4. I notice he's not trying it...

I suspect he's making himself feel better by denigrating your attempts. (Maybe not, but I'm personally familiar with this strategy, so I know it exists.)

However, maintenance is paid to do such things, and it is their responsibility. Possibly you should save your abilities for greater things. Gods know, they and your abilities do exist.

[OldBaldy1701E]

10. Hehe, we don't want him to try that.

He is a great baker, a great husband, and a great person in many matters. Being handy is just not one of them.

(He once put a metal cup into the microwave and cooked it. I was not aware that there are adults in 2003 (when this happened) who did not know not to put metal in the microwave, but I guess he was one of them.)

[LoisB]

5. Never, ever, ever think of yourself as "useless". You are just meant for more important jobs

than fixing a drain. Let those youngsters in maintenance handle the mundane stuff.

[OldBaldy1701E]

11. Thanks, but unfortunately life has already shown me that I am useless.

Since I cannot work, I cannot get any kind of aid, and I cannot handle this entire situation much longer.

I am not the one who keeps making me feel useless. Our society does that when it keeps telling me my career is useless and my choices of how I live is useless and my sexual preferences are useless, and my desire for a just and fair community is useless.

One tends to really believe it when it keeps coming from all angles.

[LoisB]

12. I will bet the farm there is something you do better than anyone you know. Dig deep within

yourself to recapture your self-worth. You are not "useless" to me, you make me think.

[OldBaldy1701E]

13. Thank you.

[OldBaldy1701E]

6. Thanks for all the encouraging words.

I understand that we have maintenance and that they should handle this.

My point is that I could not handle it. I could not turn the thing enough to tighten it in place. The drain was put in haphazardly, and this is the result.

I used to be the one who could fix this better than what was there. Usually within a hour.

Nowadays I can't even close one hand without a finger locking in place and requiring me to literally pull it back into position. My arthritis is so bad these days I cannot even grasp things at certain angles.

If this is my future, I don't want it.

[OldBaldy1701E]

14. The maintenance dude just left.

He was the man!

He extended the sink pipe because ti was just too short for the connection. He also removed the ring washers on all of the connections in the drain because they were plastic crap and replaced them with rubber washers. It won't come apart now.

Thanks dude! That was exactly what I would have done as well!