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DurgaPuja 2020



           Next weekend rolls around and I am ready to proceed. Except now, I see a few more videos and it
           turns out that the drain filter is actually in the lower front panel for my model and I should look at it
           first before I fiddle with the pump. I have never noticed it - but there was a push button panel that
           opens up, revealing the filter. Neat! The things you learn!

           15 min later, the floor is dry, and I am able to pry open the filter all the way out. Sure - it’s
           completely gunked up. I mean it took a while to get that bad! Wow! That much gunk? Anyway, I
           clean it and put it in its place. Now it’s time to put everything back where they belong- in the closet.
           It hits me that if I had known about the filter’s location earlier, I wouldn’t have had to move
           anything!! Too late. I recalled one of my mentors once saying- An hour in the library saves a week in
           the lab. Too late!! Why do all my aphorisms flash in my brain, AFTER the fact! Hindsight is 20/20!
           I try to move the table closer to the washer in order to transfer the dryer onto it and it collapses!
           Literally - like the weight of the dryer is too much for a folding table. It stood there bravely for a
           whole week - and now - when it only needs to do its job for a mere 15 seconds longer - it decides to
           collapse!


           I am not hurt - although an inch closer and my toe would be in a cast. That would be a lot more than
           $ 300! I thank the almighty and move forward. Self-help!!!! I shall believe!!!


           There is no way I can lift the dryer off the floor and straight onto the washer- I am not much of a
           snatch and jerk guy - besides I worked in spine for a while and have seen too many herniated discs.
           But I am motivated! I get a dolly and lift it on the dolly- then I get a chair and lift it onto the chair
           and finally from the chair I lift it onto the washer! Yes!!! Little steps! Ingenuity! I have been blessed
           with imagination - and I could work out in my mind exactly how it would proceed! Hurray! Never
           mind that I couldn’t imagine the collapsing of the folding table. You cannot imagine everything!

           Of course the crash had dislodged the duct from the dryer as well - but it looked like I could just
           snap it back. Wrong! Twenty min later, I gave up trying to align the pokeyoked ends together- it was
           backwards ! I mean- come on! I used to teach my lowly interns this shit! Whenever you have
           mating components, you got to rig it such that there is only one way it can snap back together! And
           yet - I couldn’t do it. I resort to that ultimate engineering tool- duct tape! Yeah baby!


           I move everything back - and of course the pipe in ceiling where the other end of the duct is
           supposed to fit into is just out of reach for me to fiddle my screwdriver to tighten a ring clamp! . No
           matter. More duct tape!

           And then it’s all done! I step back and survey the scene! Broken table to the side, lots of fluff floating
           around from the truant duct- but it was all done! The washer worked and the dryer dried without
           air or fluff blowing into the room! The duct tapes held- Hallelujah!


           And then I remembered what a fool I would look like if the technician came, popped the filter
           cleaned it and charged me $300 for it. It’s happened to me before - with a refrigerator!
           Self help! There is something to be said for it after all. Now, there is only one question - should I
           return my torx screw set? Nah! A man needs his toys.
           Maybe I will need it when the dishwasher jams up.





          Central Ohio Bengali Cultural Association
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