Blessing number 2:

This afternoon, there was a knock on the door and it was a young man from the water company. They are replacing all of the meters in town, and we were next on his list. I brought him downstairs and after moving a few things, showed him where the cut-out in the wall was. He shined (shone) his flashlight back between the walls and let out an audible "gulp." The meter was back where I got stuck. And I would have needed a chain saw to cut out a profile of HIS stomach. But, thank God I had cut the notch out. Even then, he knew he couldn't work back in there, even if he could squeeze his way back between the walls. And then he noticed the the medicine cabinet in the bathroom was cut out very close to the meter. So, we went into the bathroom and with a lot of tugging and cutting out caulking, I was able to remove the medicine cabinet. The meter was close enough so that he could get at one side of it, but the other side, he'd have to crawl back between the walls. I offerred to do it for him (I've lost 30 pounds and I could get between the walls now without the cutout profile. But, he was able to squeeze between the cut out stud and the wall and reach the pipe he had to disconnect. Blessing number 2. When he was putting the new meter in, he needed me to go between the walls and hold one side of the meter. With my new semi-svelte shape, it was a piece of cake. I felt thoroughly vindicated. I must admit, I went in and out from behind the wall mores times that I probably needed to, but I just wanted to show the wall who is boss in this house!

When the guy went out to his truck after the job, I went out to check the mail and I could hear him telling his boss what a nightmare the job was. I told him he'd be telling his grandchildren about this job.

Maybe that's blessing number 3 on the other side of through..

Jerry