Cleanliness is Next to...

I have finally completed a summer-long project of cleaning and renovating the master bathroom. This bathroom is located down a corridor from the master bedroom. There's really no reason to go down there unless you are using that bathroom, which I hadn't for years. My bathroom is off the main hallway before entering the bedroom.

So when I finally got a good look at the bathroom again after it was vacated last semester, I was, to say the least, a bit dismayed by its condition. I don't even want to think about the number of hours and dollars spent in the process of scrubbing, scraping, bleaching, patching, painting, repairing and replacing items over the last few months. I probably should have taken before and after photos, because no one will believe me, but it was just too depressing to document. I am just glad this project is done.

The renovated room looks even better than when I first moved in. It's now a bit like a nice hotel bathroom ready for guests. It was actually the arrival of guests that played a big part in pushing me through the final days of the project. My parents, both sisters, and niece and nephew all came for a visit on very short notice. It was a mad, frantic dash to get it all done before they arrived.

On reflection, I wasn't sure which bad title to use for this post. The absurdity of the situation led to some equally ridiculous possibilities.

Wax on, wax off.

Zen and the Art of Bathroom Maintenance.

The Land of the Lost.

The many hours of scrubbing became part of my summer workout program. Day after day of the same action to make small incremental progress toward the final goal. Too bad there wasn't the side benefit of defeating the town bullies while winning the championship, the girl, and the respect of Mr. Miyagi.

I tried to maintain some balance and perspective during the process by staying focussed in the moment of the action at hand, rather than why it was now even necessary to be doing any of this. As with all actions, if you are going to take the time and energy to act, strive to act with the utmost quality. If you are going to do something, do it to the best of your ability. Take pride in not only the end result, but in each step of the process along the way.

But I am human, so I must admit that at times it seemed as if I may never be able to leave here. I often felt frustrated in the realization of what else I might have been able to accomplish this summer, if not for the time lost redirected to this project.

I sincerely apologize to any fans of Pat Morita or Robert Pirsig, not so much to fans of Enik and Cha-Ka.