Dear colleague,
A few Sundays ago, our bathroom tub faucet developed a drip-drip-drip that wouldn't stop.
I had a few options:
- Pretend it wasn't dripping. (Pro: Don't have to do anything. Con: Waste of water, waste of money on water bill.)
- Call a plumber. (Pro: Don't have to do anything but call someone. Con: Expensive.)
- Get on YouTube and figure it out. (Pro: Save money, learn something, feel good. Con: Have to do something.)
I was feeling cheap (I mean, I was feeling mentally strong), so I went with #3.
During the process, I gained a few insights about the teacher life.
#1 – Fixing a faucet is so different from teaching high schoolers that it basically felt fun and relaxing.
There is something refreshing about being in a Man-versus-Nature conflict instead of a Man-versus-The-Mind-Boggling-Complexity-of-Education one.
- Search problem on YouTube.
- Refine search.
- Figure out what a faucet cartridge is.
- Turn off water in house.
- Figure out how to remove faucet cartridge.
- Take cartridge to hardware store while family is annoyed that water is turned off.
- Install replacement cartridge.
- Turn water back on.
- Feel disproportionately self-satisfied at seeing a non-drippy tub faucet.
I mean, teaching is just so much more complicated than that. It's fun to do something simpler.
(Not saying plumbing is simple, just saying this particular plumbing problem was really simple.)
#2 – Ignoring problems is tempting but expensive.
Drip.
Drip.
Drip.
How many leaks are there in my classroom right now? What are those drips costing me and my students in terms of sanity and learning?
#3 – Fixing problems isn't always as hard as you think it'll be.
It took some work, but the “once begun, half done” adage proved tried and true.
Are there any drips in my classroom right now that could be solved in a similar amount of time (60-90 minutes) using a similarly simple set of steps?
Good things to ponder, colleague — especially this time of year.
Dealing with drippy faucets right beside you,
DSJR
P.S. This is kind of how we're going to tackle the Focused Finish — pick a drippy faucet or two and enjoy the feeling of making just those changes.
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