I am an idiot.

I am an idiot.  

I don't write those words lightly. Over the past few months I have been on a mission to be kinder and gentler with myself. Whenever I find my inner dialog engaging in a one-sided conversation that is reminiscent of an enemy instead of a friend, I have tried to pause and reframe my perspective. Unfortunately, right now, the only way to frame my current situation is to agree (as gracefully as possible) that I am an idiot.

Over the weekend the boys and I headed to PA to visit my Mom and niece. Robby and Timmy were both happy for the change of scenery and for the spoiling that they always experience whenever we visit. While I was looking forward to relaxing with my Mom and the kids, I also wanted to help her tackle some projects around the house. 

On Saturday afternoon, Robby, Tiffany (my niece) and I went into the bathroom to begin the biggest project of the weekend: replacing the baseboard heater.  I've never before replaced a baseboard heater, but I reasoned that it was not difficult. I figured that it would take about 30-45 minutes to complete the job. 

I should have factored our inexperience into the timeline. An hour into the project and we still had not yet removed the existing heater. Needless to say, the "easy" project managed to highlight our team's inexperience and lack of technical knowledge!

After an hour we managed to remove the existing baseboard. I took the staple gun to tack down the end of the linoleum, which was curl from the edges. I had never before used a staple gun, but it looked like a drill and seemed easy, so I figured it would be easy. At this point, I just wanted to get the job done quickly so that we could move onto dinner. I grabbed the staple gun, plugged it in and lined up the end onto the linoleum.

I heard the staple fly and ping onto the ground. I figured that I didn't have the gun positioned correctly, so I pressed the tip down harder and pulled the trigger again.  Again, I heard the staple fly out and ping across the ground. After probably 30 misfires, I changed (what I could only assume to be) the pressure setting.  I pressed the gun hard against the linoleum, pushed down with more force and pulled the trigger.

S#*t! I fired four staples into the palm of my hand. Ouch does not adequately describe the pain of the realization. I quickly pulled the staples out and applied pressure. I quickly realized that I had been holding the staple gun upside down. 

So in my zeal to push through a project quickly, I stapled my hand because I had been holding the staple gun upside down.  I am an idiot is really the only adequate explanation for why my hand is still hurting this morning.

** We ended up bandaging my hand and finishing the install.  My Mom now has a brand new (working) heater in her bathroom, and the kids have the satisfaction of a job well done. They also had a real life demonstration about why it is important to slow down when working with tools.