stick 'em up

Some of us use caulk. Some of us use joint compound. Some of us use foam. And yet others use...a stick. Yes, it's another day at Raccoon Tree Acres, home of the toilet held together with a brick, and we're undoing more of the creative repairs done by the previous owners. I didn't make much progress on painting the kitchen last weekend. I was just too overwhelmed and cold and, er, lazy. I'll admit it. I couldn't be bothered to do much of anything this weekend but buy a microwave and vaccuum the house and sit by the fire with a good book and my laptop.

Mr. Reluctant, however, went on a cleaning spree, and he removed his bicycle parts from the porch and cleaned up the back yard. He went through two boxes of tchotchkes and cleaned the kitchen several times. He also (bless his heart) decided to clean the bathroom fan vent, which was filthy and wasn't cleaned when the guys installed the new fan motor. The POs were using a broken fan that was somehow (?!) missing not only the plastic light shield but also the entire housing, exposing a bare bulb and holes for the vents. Although I would have much preferred to wait and get a nice fan in a different shape and material, the mildew in the bathroom dictated a quick fix, so I bought a stronger motor and kit to replace the plastic parts, which the electrician installed when he was rewiring the kitchen. I've been meaning to unscrew the housing and clean the vent since then but was put off by the thought of such a dirty overhead job.

Mr. Reluctant tackled the project. He took down the fitting and cleaned everything out, then inspected the installation and cleaned out the cracks to make room for caulk. Wedged along one side of the fan, probably to reduce rattling, was an elm stick. I've heard of hardwood floors, but this is the first time I've heard of hardwood caulk.