my husband is a genius.

fish went downstairs to check on the laundry sink and found it was AGAIN overflowing!

so much for thinking i'd fixed my very first house problem.

pooh.

he used our **brand new** shop vac to suction out all the water and found...ta-da! a round plastic knobby thing ((which neither of us recognize)) had fallen into the sink and plugged the drain.
   the faucet kept on leaking.
   the washer kept emptying into the basin.
   yet nothing was draining due to this little knobby thing.

after solving the mystery of the plugged-up pipe, fish decided to go ahead and also crack the case of the faulty faucet!

just call him mr. ambitious. 

now, this baffles me -- with no previous plumbing experience whatsoever, he knew:
   > to shut the water off - that would have been my first mistake, however obvious
   > how to shut the water off
   > that we needed a new faucet
   > how to take off the old faucet
   > what new faucet to buy that would fit the old faucet's holes
         seriously.
            he went to home depot and was back in 20 minutes with a new faucet.
               just like that.
   > how to install the new faucet -- and it even works!! and it's shiny!

i can't fathom how many steps in that whole process i would have royally screwed up. but he just did it. off the top of his head! i already think he's smartest man i've ever met...and i know he's a quick learner...but he was SO BRILLIANT today!

i'm awestruck.

by my own husband.

i also feel the need to do something really creatively spectacular so i can prove my worth in this house as well. 

* mari