Make It Work!

I’m turning into my Dad.

I have said it before, but it’s worth repeating. I’ve known this for a while now. I have been aware for years that I have my Dad’s offbeat sense of humor, and that I get anxious in big crowds the same way he does. We both love a weird news story. And every time I find myself watching the discovery channel I know it’s because of his influence.

So it shouldn’t have been a surprise when I found myself fixing the fridge in our apartment. We noticed sometime last week that the though the freezer part was still working, the fridge itself was lukewarm at best. After having to throw out a carton of eggs and pouring foul smelling milk down the drain, it was clear that something had to be done. I contacted my parents and they suggested defrosting it. One of my roommates and I did that (so we thought). Unfortunately the appliance still was not working. We feared we were going to have to call a repairman and being broke grad students, this was not a pleasant option.

The next morning I decided to look for local repair guys online, but instead of doing that, almost unconsciously, I typed “how to fix your fridge” into Google. I suddenly had a vision of my dad with an owner’s manual sprawled in front of him while he pieced some poor ill working thing together.

After doing some research I unplugged the fridge and inspected the thing from top to bottom. I checked its coils and located its condenser (the condenser is enclosed so there was really nothing I could do but locate it). 

And then I discovered the problem. Turns out that we only did a surface defrost, the freaken thing was frozen from inside out. So I did a major defrost number two and that did the trick.

Now I know it was an easy fix, but there was something rather empowering about realizing that I had a bit of control over the machines around me. And I know that one has to be careful with DIY projects, I have no desire to cut myself open, or electrocute myself. But I have to say I’m so glad that I grew up in a household where working with your hands was valued. 

Even more important however, is the feeling I got while I was giving the fridge its diagnostic tests. I felt like my dad, and the connection to my lineage was lovely.