Rule #3: If You can't Break it, Take it Apart

One of the peculiarities of the Mallory house was that it was built by an upscale builder who ran out of money, so the bank finished it so they could sell it. The result was a fabulously built house with cheesy finishing touches, such as finish carpentry, light fixtures, hardware, carpeting, and appliances. We replaced a lot of things early on, including the interior doorknobs, consigning the old doorknobs to a box on a shelf in the garage workshop.

Some years later, eight-year-old Gordon brought us in the bedroom (not his bedroom; the corner one that one of the girls slept it) to show us his latest achievement. He had switched out the doorknob; replacing the fancy pretty one with the pedestrian original. He was very proud of himself, and it worked perfectly. So we left it as a monument to his stellar acheivement.