19 January 2011

Broken vs. Imperfect

This week I came to an understanding that my husband and I think very differently when it comes to home repair. Our definition of "in need of replacement" varies vastly. He is under the impression that if something is not in perfect working order, it needs to be replaced. I think it only needs to be replaced if it is broken.

A year ago our water heater broke; water was dripping from the bottom and putting out the pilot light. Luckily our home warranty covered the repair. The only problem was when the house was remodeled, the furnace and water heater were install and then the wall was built around them. The only way to get the old water heater out and put the new one in was to cut a fairly sizable hole in the wall. New water heater went in without a problem but we just didn't have the funds at the time to do any permanent fix to the wall. Currently covering the hole is a closet door we no longer use. This is mostly to keep the cat out of the area. It does look pretty ridiculous but I never thought about bothering to replace it yet.

We went to Lowe's last night for a couple of home improvement items that have been weighing on my husband's mind. He'd already been once and I was just going back with him after work. We found a door that would fit the hole at a reasonable price. I said let's get it. He said no. He hadn't expected us to buy it that night. We then went looking for blinds but we'd left the paper with the exact measurements at home. The sales clerk plugged in our estimated numbers (we remembered the width and knew a rough length) then asked if we wanted to order them. He said yes. I said no. I wasn't going to order blinds if I wasn't exactly sure of the length. I can shorten them but I can't lengthen them.

As we walked back through the store he continued:
Husband: "Let's go look at ______ because have you noticed it's a little loose?"
Me: "But it still works."
Husband: "But it's loose."
Me: "But it isn't broken."

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