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I did it!


To Do List
Move into apartment
Hang pictures
Buy table and chairs
Fix tub drain
Fix motorcycle 

In the past when I needed to do anything on the list above, I let somebody else do it for me. When I was young, it began with my father. After I got married, it was my husband. I don’t know where I got the message that a man needed to take care of things for me. This week, MANdie took care of things.

I know there are people out there who would have helped me with anything on the list, but the sense of satisfaction when I took a shower and wasn’t standing in water up to my knees was so much more rewarding than if a friend came to rescue me.

Originally, I asked friends to help me with the move. My impatience made me do it myself. Everyone who could help was working during the day. I had the key. I wanted to be in my own space. Within an hour, I had my girls and my car packed with my first load. We three girls lugged it all upstairs. We did it a few more times until everything was here. Pictures were hung shortly after. At the end of the day as I sat down in my lawn chairs, I looked around as a feeling of satisfaction took over.

The best on-my-own activity, by far, was fixing my bike. I am not mechanically inclined in the least. Yesterday, I went to ride only to have the nylon sleeve on the throttle spin around. It was Sunday. I had to wait to get some answers. Patience is not one of my virtues. Today, I learned how to fix it. I went and got hair spray and electrical tape and I was ready to do what I could have paid a mechanic to do. When I was done, I had to wait a couple of hours before I knew if it worked. I started her up. The sound of the pipes is music to my ears. I could listen to it all day. Today as I revved her before riding off, a sense of pride filled me. I FIXED IT!

I don’t know what I will get to fix next. I hope to learn how to do an oil change on both my bike and my car. The stairs leading to my apartment have a few steps that need boards to be replaced. I am hoping my landlord lets me have some of the fun. The sense of satisfaction that comes from doing repairs is another part of being on my own that makes me smile.

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