Problem Solver

I consider myself a problem solver.

I may bitch and moan and complain throughout the entire process, but when I have a problem, I take steps to solve it. I'm not one to ignore a problem and suffer in silence.

Much of the crappy happenings from last week have bled over into this week. I've had more and more headaches with the cable company. It's too long a story to write out here, but let me just say I've been on the phone with them six different times, and that doesn't include the three automated messages they've left on my voicemail.

All of this led to me having to take some of my precious personal business time (I only get three days per year) off work this morning to wait for the cable guy. Since I'm taking the entire day off on Friday to pick up K at the airport, it's not great timing for me to take an entire morning off. This is one of those things that always bothers me about being single and living alone. How do people who work full-time get stuff like this done?

My appointment with the cable company was supposed to be sometime between 7:30 and 10:00 this morning. I was dressed and ready for my day by 7:00, and got a confirmation call from the cable company soon after. They said they should be there by 8:30. I washed some dishes, cleaned out my fridge, and then thought about what other chores I could tackle until they got there.

Well, there was the overhead fan light.

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When I bought my house last year it had a brand-new overhead fan in the living room. It sits right over the couch, which is where I spend most of my time, and the light fixture part of it is the main light in the room. So it's very important.

Last week I started having trouble turning the light on/off. It's on a chain that you pull, and I would pull the chain and nothing would happen. It was obviously stuck on something internally, because there was no "click" that chains make when you turn on a light. I got out my ladder and took apart the fan/light fixture, but couldn't get into the internal mechanism to see where the chain was getting stuck. I was thwarted by a stubborn screw that I couldn't get loose. So I put the fan back together, put away the ladder, and ignored it for a few more days. The chain would work intermittently, so I'd just have to pull it six or seven times to get it to "click."

But it was getting harder and harder to turn it off and on, so this morning, while waiting for the cable guy, I tried it again. Got out the ladder, gathered my tools, took apart the fan/light. And this time, with a little more persistence, I was able to conquer the stubborn screw!

I opened up the mechanism to find... another, smaller mechanism that the chain went into. And this smaller chamber didn't have any apparent way to open up, not even through stubborn screws. Sigh.

I considered all my options. Will I have to buy an entirely new fan, just because the chain on the light fixture doesn't work? Maybe I should call my handyman and ask for his advice? Can I live without a light fixture in the middle of my living room? (Answer: No.) Meanwhile, I kept yanking the chain, and adjusting wires from the outside, seeing if it made a difference. Sometimes it did, but not enough to consistently make it click.

It seemed like there was a spring inside the mechanism that wasn't working. I'd pull the chain, but it wouldn't snap back like it was supposed to (making that clicking sound.) So I stuck a screwdriver into a hole in the mechanism to see if I could find the spring. Instead, I made it even worse. Now the chain wouldn't move at all. Oh, great, I thought, now I've really broken it.

With nothing else to lose, I tried to bend the little piece I'd just bent back the other way. It didn't seem like I was able to bend it very far. Then I tried the chain. Click. I tried it again. Click. Hey, it worked twice in a row! Click! Click! Click! Click! Click! Click! That was the sweetest sound I've heard all week.

I kept pulling the chain, waiting for it to stop working, but every time I pulled it, I got that beautiful clicky sound.

Wow! I fixed it! I have no idea how, but I fixed it!

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This reminds me of something my brother once said about computer programming. You can work on a program for hours, saying, "I hate this. I hate this. I hate this." But as soon as you get it to work, you say, "I love programming!"

That's sort of how I felt about my ceiling fan. Lately I've been feeling like everything in my house is falling apart or needs my attention, and that stresses me out, but it was nice to be able to overcome this challenge on my own.

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My triumphant feelings didn't last long, however. It was after 8:30, and the cable guy still hadn't come. On top of that, it was raining really hard, and I knew most of the work would be outdoor work, and I worried that the rain would make the cable guy late (if his previous jobs took longer because of the weather.)

By 9:30 he still wasn't there, even though the lady this morning said he'd be here by 8:30. I started to panic and imagined scenarios where they never show, after I had to take this time off work and everything. I was all ready to be furious at the cable company.

Then, at about 9:35, the guy showed up. It took him 20 minutes to fix the problem (a bad thingamagig on the cable pole outside my house.) Now I have cable, internet, and landline phone at home.

And all my stress has melted away. I'm not even mad at the cable company anymore. The repair guy said they'd take $20 off my next bill for the interruption in service. I may have a really bad temper and hold grudges, but once someone fixes the problem and makes amends for it, I'm over it.

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And just in time. K comes on Friday for my birthday and our ninth super date weekend. I can't wait!