Successful Sink Replacement!...with a Bowl of Chili

Old Kitchen Drain

Shiny New Replacement

Yesterday,  Cheryl and I did the finishing touches on "things that annoy us".   Meaning:   Things that technically are not broke, but either look ugly, or bother us in some way of function.   For me,   that was the Kitchen Sink Drain.   It is rusted/ corroded and not very pleasing to the eye.   Time for a replacement!

Dremel ( type) tool in action

I have not had the best of luck when it comes to plumbing lately.   ( And by lately,  I mean EVER!)  So this was one of those things I wanted to check out before I ordered a bunch of parts and tools only to be stumped later on.

And no disasters this time!

I tried to turn the fixture,  and it turned!   YEAH!   However,  the sealing washer on the underside refused to budge.   Similar to the Bathtub drain,  I thought I would be out of luck....Until...   I realized I could simply cut the darn thing off!

New Drain installed!

One Dremel ( type) tool later and the washer had been cut,  allowing me to remove it easily.  If only the bathtub could have been this simple...

Omitting the Plumbers Putty 

The rest was so simple I barely have to describe it.   The pictures do most of the talking.   One note,  the yellow junk oozing out from under the drain I think is a combination of rust eating bacteria and plumbers helper putty.   I did not use the putty...because I'm not a plumber AND I did not want anything between the sink bottom and fixture.  AND  it looks crappy.  I've heard that is gets in the way more than it helps anyway...but what do I know.   I'm no plumber.   ( There are no leaks, BTW.   I managed to check that out before making a huge puddle in the kitchen.  

Other than that,   we reassembled the closets,  shampooed the carpet, changed the apartment number on the front door, replaced the hanger pole in the bedroom.  and Cheryl completely finished painting the bathroom closet shelving unit.   That was FUN!    Cheryl inhaled poisonous vapors causing her to hallucinate.   At one point she actually thought I was "The King" AND handsome!  Talk about scary.....   We later aired out the bathroom in the sub-zero temps by leaving the window open all night.   That was fun too!   Nothing says good morning like icicles on the bathroom Ceiling.

So many variations!  But it's all good in the cold...

So to combat the cold,   I have been trying to perfect my  Home Cooked Chili Recipe.   I have figured out that Chili has a few things in common...and the rest is all add lib.  Basically,  Chili power....Cumin,  Tomatoes, peppers, onions, garlic.

Chili's Main Ingredients

 Everything else is optional.  Meat?   Sure.   Beans?  Only if you like them.   Spices?  As many or as few as you can stand.     What kind of beans or meat is totally up to you.  So...with  those simple guidelines...there are many variations that can happen.

And many, MANY more....

One note:   I'm not a big fan of "heat",    So, light on the hot peppers, chili powder, and/or tabasco sauce.  ( If that is even included)   Slow cooking  is the key, I guess.   "Let the flavors mingle in a snow dance".  

And even MORE!

I guess the key ingredient is patience...because it seems to take all day for that to happen.

Is the Most Important Part

 I used to love slow cooking,  but it is easy to forget things sometimes.   Or eat them in a fit of hunger before things are thoroughly blended.   We shall see how far I take Chili Makin'   But or now... in the cold weather...  I'll be enjoying  the experimentation process.