tptb dragoon

DIY

I do a bit of DIY from time to time. I'm OK at some jobs but not others. Know your limits. I borrowed some rodding rod jobbies (you know, sewer rods) from a friend to clear a blocked drain. I like to look after things I borrowed so I carefully washed all the brown crap(!) off them and returned them to my mate in their orginal blue colour. "Oh, I'd forgotten they were blue" he said. I made a mental note to pay attention to how things are given to me in the first place...

Today, I popped into B&Q. There's always something to take your mind off things like looking at fashion statements such as shell suits and shoes or listening to arguments about types of paint. This time, a young assistant was helping a woman choose various decorating items and was obviously getting tired of the process. I had just selected some sugar soap and she arrived and asked him which she should choose. He waved at the range of pre-mixed triply expensive shelf and said "they're all the same". So she picked one at random and asked how she should apply it. "The instructions are on the bottle" came the helpful reply. I must say that the staff there are normally much more helpful than that.

I asked a different assistant where the glue was and was instantly told Ailse 3 down on the left. I went there and immiediately spotted the glue I required. I grabbed a tube and looked at the label to check. The very nice Frenchman standing next to me said "Do you know about glue?". Was he questioning my choice? Was he about to advise on the best glue for inhaling? No, he just wanted advice on wood glue - which I gladly gave. What a nice conversation. You see - DIY can be fun. Actually, I have just spent 2 hours sugar-soaping a ceiling and that isn't so fun.