I have a new set of things to worry about as a home owner. One of them is quite pleasant: How shall I redecorate?

My condo is not new, so I have to be careful of old-school carcinogenic building materials. Which are probably lodged in the popcorn covering that is blighting my ceiling.

I want to take it off! One of the guys at work (who also told me how to replace a toilet) told me it's really easy: just spray it with water and scrape it off.

"But what about asbestos?" I asked.

"Psh! You don't need to worry about that."

But I do worry. I had to research it.

Know what I found out?

He was right!

The EPA and OSHA basically say that if you keep it sufficiently wet, asbestos-containing materials cannot become airborne, so they can't be breathed in and give you asbestosis, which is basically asbestos induced lung cancer.

They don't even say you have to wear a mask; just make sure the material is sufficiently wet.

I'm gonna have to pick the color to paint the ceiling now.