WHERE DID WE PUT THE STRAIT JACKET?

Since we have moved back into the house, things seem to be slipping a bit.

Oh, the dogs are fine. That's not what I mean. John and I have worked really hard to get things sorted and stored and thrown out and put away, but there is still SO much left to do. Boxes and boxes and....

Boxes.

And then, there's the plumbing.

One day I did a load of laundry and the water from the machine dumped and back up into the bathtub and toilet, clear across the house.

So we called the plumber.

He had some work to finish, anyway.

His minion, who seemed very able, came out yesterday about noon and put in the new washtub, two new faucets and then set to work rodding out the line in the bathroom. He was here until about 5pm. When he left he assured us the toilet, while not great, was functional.

Wrong-O.

Far from functional it is in considerably worse shape than when he started.

It is, how shall I say this?

Useless.

I am driving to the Gallery two or three times a day to use the facilities, but we have no shower and I cannot do laundry, either. I did 4 loads of laundry at the laundromat yesterday and all of it except for a sweatshirt and 3 t-shirts belonged either to the linen closet or to John. Silly me, I thought now that my dryer had been moved back into the house, I could do laundry.

When the kid rodded out the sewer I think he just solidified the clog.

I spent a lot of time on the phone this morning starting at 7 in the morning trying to get someone out here. We all have a breaking point: today was mine.

For $2500 one guy would come out and rod out the line. Of course the tricky part is that we do not know where the line IS in front

I called the Village to come out and locate the pipe. They won't come out until all the other utilities have been marked. They said "Your plumber does that."

I was speaking to someone in the police dept and I didn't want to argue so I mumbled ok and hung up and had more hysterics.

I called JULIE, the people you are supposed to call for this kind of thing and a lovely child named Courtney was so nice to me it was all I could do to keep from sobbing in gratitude. She will have them all out here Monday at 7. Very nice. Oh yes, thankyouthankyouthankyou.

At this point had she said "We will be out Monday to blow up the house" I would have said the same thing. And meant it. I might have offered to help.

Here is how desperate I feel:

Courtney said "Is there anything else I can do for you today?" and I said

"Send a port-a-potty?" and she said "I have that number, would you like it?"

And I actually...

thought

seriously

about it for just a moment....before I declined and managed to laugh.