The strange case of the teenager, the plug and the mud.

[avocadoinasidecar]

By way of mitigation for posting here hopefully this sorry tale will also amuse some of you.

Teenage DS decided to get off the xbox, so be careful what you wish for, and go out for a walk through muddy fields in new trainers. Considerately, he comes home, opens the porch door (letting all the heat out) and proceeds to sit down on the doorstep and clean the mud of his prized new trainers that he got for Christmas (leaving the doorstep in a state of horror.

Upon realising that said prized trainers were still muddy he disappeared upstairs, unknown to the amateur Sherlock that is DD who somebody failed to notice this transgession when she can normally notice a single hair out of place, especially if she can blame DS. He then proceeded to the bathroom and installed a Jackson Pollock style mud installation on the bath, walls, sink and floor but the prized trainers are now spotless.

DD is still, remarkably oblivious, bribery is suspected. Either that or she has done something which she wants DS to keep quiet about. I am suspicious.

Meanwhile DS has discovered that the pop up plug in the sink now won't pop up. He investigates this and it still won't pop up so he decides to push it down further to see if it will pop up. Now it he discovers that it is even more stuck.

Distraught, he tries everything he can, somehow managing to sneak into the kitchen and retrieve a BBQ skewer and a new kitchen knife. It's no good the plug is still stuck and his sister is now at the bathroom door demanding to know what is going on because she has to wash her hair and she has to wash it NOW. Realising that there is no hope now DD's detective senses are on the case, DS reluctantly calls 'Mum, come here'. 'Mum, there's a problem' You don't say.

Abandoning my cup of tea, in much the same way that DS probably abandoned all hope. I go upstairs reluctantly and 'admire' the new Jackson Pollock style art installation. DD shares my horror. DS says he doesn't know how it happened, DD decides to enlighten him using words that I will not repeat. Still, it saved me a job.

And now the problem. At this point Piglet John will hopefully don his superhero cape and swoop to the rescue but any advice will be appreciated. How the f* do I get the plug out?

@Blowingagale

Placemarking and using @ to call *@pigletjohn*

Yes! Where's *@pigletjohn* ?

I'm reminded of the time in about year 10 when after lunch the teacher noticed mud on the carpet. In line with usual approach no one owned up and no one said who it was.
So teacher walked round the boys (who would have been playing football on the field), and saw one with visible mud on his shoes so handed him a dustpan and brush and told him to brush it up.

Cue much "wasn't me, miss" etc.

Teacher ignores and goes to register. This progressed without an incident until she calls out "Dale..."
Long pause, then she looks round at the form with a longsuffering look. "He was here earlier. Where is he?"
"Cleaning the mud off his shoes in the toilets," comes the reply from one of the boys at the back.

Control lost at that point including the teacher, who then apologised to the boy cleaning up, and dispatched him outside to bang the rest of the mud off his shoes.

When Dale came back in, he was greeted with a piercing look from her and "you owe X boy a huge favour..." (I think it was given the next day at the tuck shop)

May I ask how old your children are?

I recommend my DH's solution to stuck plugs.

Stand at the sink and stare at it. I think he's convinced that if you stare hard enough it will pop up of its own accord.

I've had luck with a very, very thin knife IF your plug has a visible rubber seal on the plug. Carefully insert the knife between the seal and the sink and 'lever' it very gently. Don't force it if gentle levering doesn't work

What was that thread? A fish slice and sex lube? Try that.

@AcrossthePond55

I recommend my DH's solution to stuck plugs.

Stand at the sink and stare at it. I think he's convinced that if you stare hard enough it will pop up of its own accord.

I've had luck with a very, very thin knife IF your plug has a visible rubber seal on the plug. Carefully insert the knife between the seal and the sink and 'lever' it very gently. Don't force it if gentle levering doesn't work

What was that thread? A fish slice and sex lube? Try that.

DS and DD#1 are both mid-teens.

AIBU to start a thread asking if it's acceptable to introduce my DS and DD to 101 uses for a fish slice and sex lube when not at Centerparcs?

Unscrew the u bend underneath the sink, use something like a wooden spoon handle to push the plug back up.

Hahaha I came to suggest exactly what xmasgrump did.
Wooden spoon handle tapped with a hammer, pushed ours up when dd got it jammed full of sand in the summer.

No advice but have just found the mud stained cloth the DS has used to clean his trainers before work and endured an hour long trudge through the liquid mud with teenage dd wearing a long white skirt. 😬

Have you got a little suction cup thingy for changing your tiny halogen-type lightbulbs?

is it a clacker waste
(where you push the mushroom once to close, and once more to spring up)?

or a pop-up waste
(where there is a lever or button by the tap that you push up and down)?

the prized trainers are now spotless.

Isn't that all that matters?

@witchend at the muddy carpet.

@Xmasgrump and @Ewanthescreamsheep we can't get the u bend undone, we've tried that. Whichever idiot me who unscrewed it last time did it up too tight.

@PinkyDozza I am just thankful that my DS didn't wear a white skirt on his walk today.

@Bluetrews25 No but we will have tomorrow, DS has bought some online. Genius idea about using them for the halogen style lightbulbs, I was pondering how to change the one in the bathroom that went the other day.

@PigletJohn It's a clacker waste (and I have now learnt something as I never knew they were called that. Every day is a school day)

@Andylion It depends who you ask. DD#1 says not, DS insists that do. DD#2 is on the fence and thinks the pair of them are both fools.

@Hailtomyteeth

Beautifully written, OP!

Agreed!

@sparepantsandtoothbrush

Bad day *@nunoftheother*?

Very good day, thanks, all things considered.

Just didn't find the story either remotely amusing or well-written. Sorry. (And anyone who did needs to read some decent comic writing...)

I HATE those pop up plugs. I ripped ours out after it got stuck one too many times and got an old fashioned rubber plug. They also make it hard to clean the sink properly if they're the design that doesn't screw right out.

Don't get me started on the push flush on the loo. Ours gets stuck in all the bloody time and you have to push it really fast a million times to get the bloody idiot to pop out again.

Next time we get our bathroom done I'll be looking for good old fashioned technology

I recommend you chain DS to his Xbox for the rest of lockdown. The great outdoors is currently overrated.

Just didn't find the story either remotely amusing or well-written. Sorry. (And anyone who did needs to read some decent comic writing...)

Don't waste your time on it then

Get a Boot Buddy for future muddy trainer situations. They are amazing.

@avocadoinasidecar

Just didn't find the story either remotely amusing or well-written. Sorry. (And anyone who did needs to read some decent comic writing...)

Don't waste your time on it then

I fervently wish I hadn't! It was mis-sold...

I fervently wish I hadn't! grin It was mis-sold...

And yet here you are still, like a dog with a bone.

@Nunoftheother
Perfect punctuation has never made me smile and laugh out loud. The opening post did.
I found that beautiful.

[quote Hailtomyteeth]@Nunoftheother
Perfect punctuation has never made me smile and laugh out loud. The opening post did.
I found that beautiful.[/quote]
I'm glad it made you laugh. I can't claim to be that bothered by perfect punctuation on MN but I am bothered about having a laugh.
advice. It wasn't beautiful but it was funny for some and that's what matters IMO.

When my trainer obsessed son was a teen he would use baby wipes, nearly a whole pack and leave them dumped on the kitchen work top. Baby wipes are awesome for cleaning trainers.

A clacker waste will unscrew upwards. Rubber gloves or a sucker may help you grip it.

Dirty trainers, football boots etc can be thrown in a bucket of water outside the house door and sloshed about a bit before throwing the muddy water on the garden. Mud and grit are not water-soluble and will clog your plumbing.