GOT STRESS?

I'm thinking about getting a tool belt. And maybe my own hammer and some other cool tools to stick in it. Always one to avoid "tools of limited destruction", I think I may have changed my mind about such things. Now this is a cataclysmic shift in my universe, since anyone who knows me knows I'm far more likely to pound a nail with the heel of a shoe or a meat tenderizing mallet than to search for an actual, elusive hammer. (I refer you to my post of 6/18).

My friend, a mild-mannered woman who plays the organ and decorates cakes, mentioned that she was in the midst of a home project. Now mind you, previous to this occasion, I would have considered stitch-ripping the limit of her destructive bent. Not so today. I stopped by and from the street I heard pounding that rumbled from both the house and the garage. Following the thunderous hammer, I found her, hammer in one hand, long-handled chisel in the other, sabotaging her old tile floor.

She rolled her eyes and placed an apologetic hand on her head which was matted and white from the flying cement dust hanging in the air.

"Hi Laurie," she chuckled with a smile. "Come on in."

I was amazed at how much she had already accomplished. "You look like you're having fun."

"I am," she replied with a tease. "It's way fun and it's therapeutic. All my stress is gone."

"Can I try?" I asked. Moments later I too was slamming a hammer onto tiles, soon making a sport of it by attempting to crack or break something with each hammer swing. We pounded and scooped and scraped for a while, and then the job was done.

I can't adequately say how satisfying it was to see those tiles break away and to reveal another square of floor. Maybe it was the rush of adrenaline produced by good physical labor. Maybe it was the pleasure of completing a task. No... I think it was simply the satisfying and totally juvenile delight of being allowed to break something. Heck, it was fun!

And there's something to be said for the cathartic release demolition provides. My friend's stresses are unbelievable, and today, she was as delighted a child.

Happiness in the demolition of a floor. . . Who'd a thunk it?

Got Stress? Hang out at Home Depot in the chisel department and volunteer to help the next family that needs a ceramic floor remodel.

I highly recommend it.