You know how you might hear an expression used by other people, then adopt it for yourself? Oh well, we do it a bit - Marc even moreso - but when he does he uses it part tongue in cheek, knowing that I know why he is using it. Bit of a PJ*, really. (*Private Joke).

A recent favourite is "What a pleasure." - a line his boss uses a lot. The context is always along the lines of either something working again properly, or being back in one's comfort zone after having to deal with something uncomfortable or annoying for a time. So, for example, if he has been away, sleeping in a range of uncomfortable motel beds... he'll lay back on his own bed and announce "What a pleasure!" Back driving in the saneness of Australian traffic after a period in Asia - "What a pleasure." The noise of a jack hammer stops after going for sometime - "What a pleasure." Spoken with the emphasis a bit like so: "What a pleasure."

The other week he finally figured out what was making a *creak, creak* noise on the triplet bike. All through the 8 days of the Big Ride he hadn't solved it.. you could hear them coming behind you *creak, creak, creak*... and he'd spent time since trying different fixes (like greasing the seat post), to no avail. One morning on the community ride (the day I fell off my bike) they solved it. The next 30km he kept saying "What a pleasure." - along with the other family PJ where he kept saying every 5 minutes "Have I mentioned how great it is not to hear that creaking anymore?"

So he fixed both toilet cisterns yesterday. For at least six months -no, more like 12 - we've had to make a point of holding the flush button down until the cisterns had emptied, otherwise they would continue to leak into the bowl. It was a work-a-round that you just got used to. (I'd find myself doing it when I was out!). Inconvenient, yes, but most of us managed it - even Zoe - except of course Ms 14, who is too goddamned lazy to do anything that might be slightly inconvenient - that might take up an extra 15 seconds of her precious time. Every morning after they'd leave for school I'd find an unflushed toilet - and given she is usually the last one up, I'd know it was her. We'd take her to task on it, and she'd get uppity about the sheer inconvenience of it all. Like 'god, I can't believe they expect me to put up with such Third World standards..." (To say that this bit of Attitude, among others, has been the cause for some Issues between us would be an understatement.)

So yesterday - two rubber washer thingies (@ $2.80 each) later - and the cistern innards pulled apart and reassembled - we have two normally working loos!

As Her Highness went up to bed last night, she came back down the stairs after visiting the bathroom. This time it wasn't to dream up a dozen other things she needed to do before bed. Marc missed it, but, through the TV program I was watching I thought I heard her say something intended to be heard by both of us.

I think it was .. "What a pleasure."

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