It happened

You know The Bad Thing I've been dreading? I think I know what it is. The pipe under my kitchen sink is leaking like the Mississippi River. It probably has been for a while, judging from the musty smell down there.

Of course I found it on a Sunday night when everything is closed. I keep nothing under the sink but plastic bags, and it had occurred to me that, with stores preferring we not shop with our own canvas bags due to germs and Covid19, I have more than bags in here than I can use in a lifetime. The little task I gave myself to do was get rid of some of those plastic bags. That's when I discovered the smell and the icky brown water. Oh, well. At least I got rid a lot of the bags. (Like a black Hefty garbage full.)

I suppose it doesn't matter that I can't reach a plumber right now because I couldn't have one here tomorrow anyway. I have to work from here. I may have Zoom meetings or conference calls, and this place just isn't big enough for me to do that without disturbance.

Naturally I freaked out. Freaking out is what I do. Then I went online and did some research. Consumers agree that Flex Seal won't repair it forever, but will hold it for awhile. Awhile is all I need. I ordered the spray and the tape from WalMart* and, hopefully, can go over and pick it up tomorrow -- either at lunchtime or after work. I'll have to go 24 hours without my kitchen sink, but I can make do with buckets of water, like I did in Girl Scouts.

For tonight, I wrapped an old dishtowel around the leak and tied it with a string. That should slow it down. There's a bucket there to catch the rest. A bowl of vinegar should help with the musty smell. After Labor Day, I have to get a plumber in here to replace that pipe.

There's something Snarky Pants calls "pre-knowing." When your thoughts show you something that you're sure will happen. I think this is at least part of what I've been wrestling with these past few weeks.

My shrink tells me to remind myself that I'm home and I'm safe. If this is the worst that happens to me for a while, I'll be OK. I'm unhappy, I'm a little scared, but I'm OK. Worse things than this happen to people every day.

*Neither of the local, independent hardware stores have it in stock! Which is too bad, because I'd prefer to shop in a small store.