Thanks to the home colonoscopy that the plumber performed today (without drugs, mind you) I now know that our sewer pipe is broken 7 feet below the sidewalk. And, because I love hanging around the house waiting for workmen and having nothing to do but housework that I can't do with no water, I will get to hang around again all day tomorrow (4 days in a row!) while they excavate part of my yard, including taking down part of my beautiful fence (which, somewhat luckily, was not to blame for this problem, as was suspected). All this joy for the low, low price of a few thousand dollars!
Remember how I wished so long and hard that I owned my own home? Well, strangely enough, I'm still happy that I do. But I will be more careful in the future about mentioning how lucky I have been that everything has been less expensive than anticipated. (I am still thankful that it was, though, or we certainly couldn't afford this little disaster. And I'm not sure we can, but we'll have to.)
At least I'll have the shitty PTA meeting to distract me this evening. Nothing like a cat fight over who gets to be president next year to help you forget your blocked up pipes and your hemorrhaging savings...
Wednesday, April 29, 2009
Tuesday, April 28, 2009
Some pleasant distractions
Let's pretend for a moment while we look at the pretty flowers that that's all I need to think about, shall we? Rather than focus on the shit in my life, both literal (ie. sewage in the basement) and figurative (ie. paying for the removal of sewage from the basement), I will now try to enjoy the brief bit of 90 degree weather and the blooms that came with it. I suggest you do the same.Sunday, April 26, 2009
Just in case you're wondering...
...why I talked about doing fun stuff with my brother, but then the only picture on the boys' blog was of hanging out on the couch and the only picture on my blog was of me and a daiquiri, then you should go look over here at the pictures he took.
...how our fence looks, check it out:
(Yes, it is going straight through the quince bush.) (And yes, the kids like to climb on it as much as you imagine.)
...who did most of the interior decorating in this house, I have a new theory. Ed Gein. I noticed the affinity for peachy beige some time ago, but the dining room takes the cake. We started stripping the wallpaper, because there is no better time to use a wallpaper steamer than during a heat wave, and under the sallow plaid upper layer were several other layers in varying flesh tones. Your average drugstore make-up department has less skin colors than this place. Witness:
...what is more disgusting than the crusty scab covering Sebastian's nostrils after his week of noseblowing, you'll love this one. I went down cellar to turn on the outside water so the kids could run in the sprinkler, and I made a gruesome discovery. There was approximately 2 inches of water on the floor and it didn't smell good. So I asked Jeremy to flush the toilet so I could see what happened. I almost wish I hadn't. The waste water from the house is draining right into the basement. At least it should be covered by our home warranty.
Thursday, April 23, 2009
The whirlwind tour
We left Saturday for our East Coast tour-- 6 cities/towns in 5 days. We are insane, I know. But I will tell you what, it was the only way to do it. None of that guests stinking after 3 days stuff for us. We barely gave anyone the chance to realize we were there before-- poof!-- we were gone. It probably would have been better had Sebastian not been sick, but he was and he was a real trooper anyway.
Some highlights:
Saturday: Finally saw Jamie and Kaci's apartment they have been living in for almost 5 years now. Sebastian's fever was probably around 104. Only Jeremy got to see Double Trouble.
Sunday: Drove to Baltimore and had lunch with Jeremy's co-worker at a cool restaurant. Went to my aunt's house to visit her family and my grandmother to find we were expected to also eat there a 1/2 hour after our lunch. Kids had an egg hunt and we were back on the road to our 3rd city to see my other grandmother and collapse into bed after watching Little Dorritt.
Monday: Went out to breakfast with my mother and grandmother, then headed down to DC in the pouring rain with my mom to go to the Air & Space museum and the Natural History museum at the Smithsonian. Sebastian was sick and whiny, my eye exploded in an allergic reaction in the orchid exhibit. Thai food for lunch at a restaurant that was supposed to be closed and then back to the guest house for a hot bath for me and naps for the 3 boys.
Tuesday: On the road again to Chincoteague to visit my little brother who is the best host ever. Anyone who says, "I'm always reading about you chopping stuff up, so I thought you'd like this" and then offers me a spread of veggies and dip and hummus and crackers can have me over anytime. Then we went over to Assateague to the awesome visitor's center and the ocean and saw some turtles, about a million egrets and 3 wild ponies grazing by the side of the road. Next we had some amazing ice cream (I had Snickers cheesecake and would have died happy). Then back to Jack's place for a fantastic dinner. He made some coconut-breaded shrimp and even though I generally don't care much for either coconut or shrimp, I ate them and liked them. There was also tuna steaks and rice and mango and veggies. Again, I will happily visit the boy. We also met his friend Susie who was super nice and kept the kids entertained with a floppy frisbee for, literally, hours. And just when I thought it couldn't get any better, Jack made me this:
and I almost decided never to leave. Mmmm... daiquiri...
Wednesday: On the road for the final time before 8am. Taco Bell for lunch at 10:45am. Then trapped in the car for 6 hours because traffic was horrible from the time we got off the Jersey turnpike until we got to the IKEA in New Haven. Then a 2 hour rushed drive home to try to catch ANTM and we were back at 8:10pm. There was quite the cheer when we all saw the "Welcome to Vermont" sign.
All in all, the kids were wonderful travellers, we didn't eat as poorly as I imagined/hoped, and we got to see lots of people we haven't seen in a long time. (Like my 14 year old cousin I'd never met.) But I will not be doing it again any time soon.
Some highlights:
Saturday: Finally saw Jamie and Kaci's apartment they have been living in for almost 5 years now. Sebastian's fever was probably around 104. Only Jeremy got to see Double Trouble.
Sunday: Drove to Baltimore and had lunch with Jeremy's co-worker at a cool restaurant. Went to my aunt's house to visit her family and my grandmother to find we were expected to also eat there a 1/2 hour after our lunch. Kids had an egg hunt and we were back on the road to our 3rd city to see my other grandmother and collapse into bed after watching Little Dorritt.
Monday: Went out to breakfast with my mother and grandmother, then headed down to DC in the pouring rain with my mom to go to the Air & Space museum and the Natural History museum at the Smithsonian. Sebastian was sick and whiny, my eye exploded in an allergic reaction in the orchid exhibit. Thai food for lunch at a restaurant that was supposed to be closed and then back to the guest house for a hot bath for me and naps for the 3 boys.
Tuesday: On the road again to Chincoteague to visit my little brother who is the best host ever. Anyone who says, "I'm always reading about you chopping stuff up, so I thought you'd like this" and then offers me a spread of veggies and dip and hummus and crackers can have me over anytime. Then we went over to Assateague to the awesome visitor's center and the ocean and saw some turtles, about a million egrets and 3 wild ponies grazing by the side of the road. Next we had some amazing ice cream (I had Snickers cheesecake and would have died happy). Then back to Jack's place for a fantastic dinner. He made some coconut-breaded shrimp and even though I generally don't care much for either coconut or shrimp, I ate them and liked them. There was also tuna steaks and rice and mango and veggies. Again, I will happily visit the boy. We also met his friend Susie who was super nice and kept the kids entertained with a floppy frisbee for, literally, hours. And just when I thought it couldn't get any better, Jack made me this:
and I almost decided never to leave. Mmmm... daiquiri...Wednesday: On the road for the final time before 8am. Taco Bell for lunch at 10:45am. Then trapped in the car for 6 hours because traffic was horrible from the time we got off the Jersey turnpike until we got to the IKEA in New Haven. Then a 2 hour rushed drive home to try to catch ANTM and we were back at 8:10pm. There was quite the cheer when we all saw the "Welcome to Vermont" sign.
All in all, the kids were wonderful travellers, we didn't eat as poorly as I imagined/hoped, and we got to see lots of people we haven't seen in a long time. (Like my 14 year old cousin I'd never met.) But I will not be doing it again any time soon.
Friday, April 17, 2009
More monkey wrenches than necessary
For months we have been planning a trip south to visit my grandmothers. Then Listmaker and Youthlarge decided to contribute 2 more people to the world whom I would love to meet, so they were added to our list of stops along the way. Then my brother decided to go to Puerto Rico and was removed from the list, only to be added again last week when he changed his mind. Finally, the itinerary was complete and all I needed to do was pack.
Well, now my mother is proclaiming 3 days of rain, and the children spent the night coughing. I spent the day in total denial, pretending it was just allergies bugging the boys. No such luck. Sebastian is a pale, lethargic bundle and Dorian is a weepy eyed sniffler.* Only tomorrow morning will tell whether we should make the trip and infect newborns and the elderly up and down the east coast.
At least at school today I got to see the awesomest variety show finale ever.
*Do not fret, Listmaker. I will not endanger those little peanuts.
Well, now my mother is proclaiming 3 days of rain, and the children spent the night coughing. I spent the day in total denial, pretending it was just allergies bugging the boys. No such luck. Sebastian is a pale, lethargic bundle and Dorian is a weepy eyed sniffler.* Only tomorrow morning will tell whether we should make the trip and infect newborns and the elderly up and down the east coast.
At least at school today I got to see the awesomest variety show finale ever.
*Do not fret, Listmaker. I will not endanger those little peanuts.
Thursday, April 16, 2009
Where should I start?
Should I start with the other day when I had this conversation?
Dorian: "Oshimashion" is a word.
Me: No, but "oscillation" is.
D: "Cock" is a word.
Or perhaps with the good one about the computer that was so infected that while I was running the anti-virus software, the list of infected files was scrolling past and featured the anti-virus software as having a virus.
Or maybe you'd like to hear about how on Monday, I was driving home from the car dealership where I had the car serviced (thankfully, the warranty covered it), and as I approached our house I saw a man asleep on the lawn. Before I could even think that perhaps a fence might have prevented this, I realized there were three men asleep on my lawn. But then, I realized that my fence was halfway up, and the men were my fence men, and they were spending their lunch break basking in the glory of a sunny spring day. And I have my fence! And it is twice as awesome as I hoped.
But what you really want to read about is probably my trip to the river yesterday with my boys and 8 year old Flapdoodle, Jr. I had planned on some rock-throwing and some bug-catching, but Junior had other plans. He proudly announced that he had jumped off the big rock into the swimming hole many times last summer, and then he decided he would like to do it again yesterday. It was sunny and about 60 degrees, which outside of VT is not exactly swimmin' weather. I informed Junior that the water was wicked cold and that it was not really a good idea to swim in. He dips a finger in to test it, remaining firm in his conviction. He needed to jump in that river. I know why he did. That water was so clear and so green, it was begging to be swum in.
I told him that if he really wanted to do it, he would have to take his clothes off, because I did not have dry clothing for him to change into. He spent a moment deliberating whether it was worth risking the embarrassment of being naked in front of his friends and their mom, told Dorian to look away, and started undressing. And then, he plunged in.
His mother had recently told me he would be joining the swim team this summer, and he was proud of his experience jumping off this rock last year. It quickly became apparent, though, that jumping into all that fresh snow melt was a bit too much for him. He surfaced, spluttering and clawing at the water. I leaned over the edge of the rock, grabbed his wrists, and pulled him out, giving him a nice scrape souvenir. After depositing his shivering body on the warmest rock I could find, I ran across the rocky beach to get him a towel. He quickly recovered, dressing again while my children disrobed and getting back to the business of exploring. But every few minutes I would hear "Allison, do you remember when I jumped in and it was so cold?" or "Allison, it was so cold, I think my organs could have shut down." Thank goodness they didn't. Especially since Flapdoodle, who only cares about disco and worrying, shrieked something about how "he doesn't know how to swim!" and something else about him being too chicken to jump off that rock last year.
Dorian: "Oshimashion" is a word.
Me: No, but "oscillation" is.
D: "Cock" is a word.
Or perhaps with the good one about the computer that was so infected that while I was running the anti-virus software, the list of infected files was scrolling past and featured the anti-virus software as having a virus.
Or maybe you'd like to hear about how on Monday, I was driving home from the car dealership where I had the car serviced (thankfully, the warranty covered it), and as I approached our house I saw a man asleep on the lawn. Before I could even think that perhaps a fence might have prevented this, I realized there were three men asleep on my lawn. But then, I realized that my fence was halfway up, and the men were my fence men, and they were spending their lunch break basking in the glory of a sunny spring day. And I have my fence! And it is twice as awesome as I hoped.
But what you really want to read about is probably my trip to the river yesterday with my boys and 8 year old Flapdoodle, Jr. I had planned on some rock-throwing and some bug-catching, but Junior had other plans. He proudly announced that he had jumped off the big rock into the swimming hole many times last summer, and then he decided he would like to do it again yesterday. It was sunny and about 60 degrees, which outside of VT is not exactly swimmin' weather. I informed Junior that the water was wicked cold and that it was not really a good idea to swim in. He dips a finger in to test it, remaining firm in his conviction. He needed to jump in that river. I know why he did. That water was so clear and so green, it was begging to be swum in.
I told him that if he really wanted to do it, he would have to take his clothes off, because I did not have dry clothing for him to change into. He spent a moment deliberating whether it was worth risking the embarrassment of being naked in front of his friends and their mom, told Dorian to look away, and started undressing. And then, he plunged in.
His mother had recently told me he would be joining the swim team this summer, and he was proud of his experience jumping off this rock last year. It quickly became apparent, though, that jumping into all that fresh snow melt was a bit too much for him. He surfaced, spluttering and clawing at the water. I leaned over the edge of the rock, grabbed his wrists, and pulled him out, giving him a nice scrape souvenir. After depositing his shivering body on the warmest rock I could find, I ran across the rocky beach to get him a towel. He quickly recovered, dressing again while my children disrobed and getting back to the business of exploring. But every few minutes I would hear "Allison, do you remember when I jumped in and it was so cold?" or "Allison, it was so cold, I think my organs could have shut down." Thank goodness they didn't. Especially since Flapdoodle, who only cares about disco and worrying, shrieked something about how "he doesn't know how to swim!" and something else about him being too chicken to jump off that rock last year.
Saturday, April 11, 2009
If it's not one thing, it's another... or both
So, my car sits in the driveway waiting to go to the dealership to determine (and hopefully fix) the cause of the moaning and groaning sound it was making on Wednesday. And then last night the computer went all wackadoo and would show our wallpaper but nothing else. No task bar, no icons, no nothing.
Lucky for us, Mr. Flapdoodle came with the rest of the flappers +1 and did his best to fix things. Clearly, I am using it now. But I don't know how long this will last. So if we all mysteriously disappear from the interwebs, you know why.
Lucky for us, Mr. Flapdoodle came with the rest of the flappers +1 and did his best to fix things. Clearly, I am using it now. But I don't know how long this will last. So if we all mysteriously disappear from the interwebs, you know why.
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