the hot place HAS frozen over

After I spent most of Monday and Tuesday trying to generate the Project from Hell's last data view and failing again and again and again even though it had always performed flawlessly until then, I asked our users if that last view was really necessary. "No," I was told. Then one of the other programmers got around to answering my pleas for help and told me that what had been causing the problem was another project. On the bright side, the Project's data is now frozen and shan't be changed anymore, what with its replacement having been activated. On the not-so-bright side, I felt like a complete moron for two days.

Then I remind myself of the bucket-sized flood I unleashed upon the kitchen when I disconnected the fridge's water line and how, in spite of that, I proved myself not to be a total idiot after all. Based on what did I decide to rate myself as maybe a partial idiot? Some water kept seeping out of the wall valve even after I shut if off. I couldn't simply but a bucket under the valve because the floor's upcoming resurfacing meant that nothing could lie on it. And none of the nearby hardware stores had 'female' valve caps of the correct size. Problems, problems... What to do? I came up with a simple solution that I think Mister Scott (and my father) would have been proud of. Not only that, it involved baling wire. But no chewing gum.