Anticipating Imperfection (Year One) is a portrait of my first year of marriage. At the time, I didn't know the root cause of the frustration and tension I was suddenly feeling. Was it because of my new marriage, because I was beginning graduate school, or because I was trying to live in a house without working appliances? In hind site, what I learned is that a dishwasher, functioning oven, and washer and dryer can do a lot for domestic happiness. This sculptural video installation uses the same style of crappy oven that I lived with for the first year of my marriage. The ticking timer is like a bomb that creates an atmosphere of tension and anticipation, only to culminate in a "ding," and a flat cake.