breaks down.
Longtime readers of this blog are familiar with my ongoing struggles with my house. Basement issues - check. Bathroom not working - check. Garage falling down - check. And just when we thought we were turning a corner and getting the basement finished. It all goes to crap.
Last Friday we had torrential, horrible, crazy, oh my goodness the world is ending, 100 year flood type rains. We got somewhere between 3 and 4 inches of rain in a 24 hour period. Not good. Ironically we had those same types of rains last year (so I guess its not 100 year, more like 1 year) when our basement leaked.
And what do you know? Our basement leaked again. Not on the fixed side that we were about to finish by laying the floor. No it leaked on the other side and then trickled over and pooled on the fixed side. So that's a big problem. Huge problem really, we need to do something about the leak before we can lay the floor. We'll try regrading first and then who knows. We were out of the basement for over a year and we were so close to going back there I could taste it. And now we'll be out for a while longer.
And after the Ark floating rains, we had a good old fashioned August style heat wave of 90+ temps. Of course the CrapShack does not have central air. Don't be silly, why would it have central air. So we lugged out all of the fans and tried in vain to cool it down. We also got out our window air conditioner and put it in our window. Or should I say tried to put it in our window.
You see as we were adjusting it, it fell out of the window. From the second story. Bubs and I just turned to eachother and started laughing. Of course, with our luck, the air conditioner would fall out the window. It was bound to happen.
We did, however, have a bit of luck. We have these big ugly evergreen bushes out in front of our house. I hate them and have wanted to get rid of them for years, but we haven't. Well those big, ugly bushes managed to serve as a cushion of sorts. The air conditioner hit the bushes and didn't make it to the ground and didn't break. Thank goodness for that. Bubs went downstairs, managed to remove the unit from the bushes and bring it (and a few branches) back up stairs. We finally got it in the window, plugged it in and held our breath. It worked! We would be cool(ish) after all.
So to make a long story short(ish), our house keeps falling down around us. We cannot finish our remodeling project at this time due to the leaks. We still only have one functioning bathroom. We are hoping the garage falls down due to some act of nature. Oh yeah, the lawn mower and the vacuum cleaner also decided to stop working. And I'm about one leaky faucet away from a breakdown. Fun times.
Showing posts with label broken. Show all posts
Showing posts with label broken. Show all posts
Thursday, June 25, 2009
Monday, February 2, 2009
Broken Down
The other day I cried in front of my daughter. And I don't just mean that there were tears running down my face. No I sat down on the ground, head in my hands and sobbed in front of her.
I've always been an easy crier. I cry at the drop of the hat. I cry during comercials. I cry during movies. I cry when I'm happy or sad, glad or angry. I just cry.
But I try to maintain control over my emotions when I deal with Bunny. I don't want her to see me to angry or upset. I am the adult, I need to show her how to deal with things calmly and rationally.
Everyone has a breaking point, however, and on Friday I met mine. Our house, our stupid Crapshack of a house, continues to break down. This time its the toilets. The upstairs one hadn't been working right for a while and we couldn't figure out what was wrong with it. We didn't call a plumber, figuring we could fix it ourselves. But we didn't. And on Friday the same problem happened with the downstairs toilet. We had no functional toilets.
I was mad, mad at myself, mad at my husband, mad at the stupid Crapshack, mad that I had to call a plumber. I was also exhausted. I had not been sleeping well due to all the things running through my head. I was worried about fixing the basement, fixing this stupid house, worried about our second adoption, worried about Bunny, worried about everything.
My emotions were rising to the surface when it came to nap time. Bunny looked at me and promised she would nap or play in her room quietly. I needed this one thing from her. I needed some time to compose myself before the plumber came.
But like so many times before and I am sure so many more times to come, what I wanted and what I needed did not matter. The only thing that mattered to her was what she wanted. And at that time, what she wanted to do ended up breaking me down. I could hear her running around, pulling every toy off the shelf, opening the door and running into my room. I could hear her calling for me "Momma, momma, momma. I'm not going to sleep. I don't want to play up here."
I went upstairs 4 times explaining to her that she needed to have some quiet time. "I don't wanna, momma." "Please." "No!" The fifth time finally did it. As I was walking up the stairs she was running back and forth between her room and mine. I asked her to listen to me and she refused.
Right at that moment all of the frustration and exhaustion broke through the little cracks in my resolve and came rushing out in a torrent of tears. I could not plug up the cracks any more. I had to let the tears flow or I would be swept away. I sat down at the top of the stairs and let the emotion overcome me, my body shuddering with the weight of everything I was feeling.
Finally I regained some measure of control and looked for Bunny. My display did not seem to affect her as I thought it would have. I thought her seeing me like this would have scared her, as it had scared me. But it did not. In fact, she continued to run from room to room, slamming and opening doors, laughing the entire time.
I knew that she could not possibly understand what it was like to have the weight of the world crushing in on you. No, I would protect her from that for as long as I could. I wanted her to stay that happy, carefree little girl. But I also wanted her to play quietly in her room.
Luckily for me and my sanity, we managed to come to an agreement. She played in her room the entire time the plumber was here, not fixing anything (but that is a story for another day).
I've always been an easy crier. I cry at the drop of the hat. I cry during comercials. I cry during movies. I cry when I'm happy or sad, glad or angry. I just cry.
But I try to maintain control over my emotions when I deal with Bunny. I don't want her to see me to angry or upset. I am the adult, I need to show her how to deal with things calmly and rationally.
Everyone has a breaking point, however, and on Friday I met mine. Our house, our stupid Crapshack of a house, continues to break down. This time its the toilets. The upstairs one hadn't been working right for a while and we couldn't figure out what was wrong with it. We didn't call a plumber, figuring we could fix it ourselves. But we didn't. And on Friday the same problem happened with the downstairs toilet. We had no functional toilets.
I was mad, mad at myself, mad at my husband, mad at the stupid Crapshack, mad that I had to call a plumber. I was also exhausted. I had not been sleeping well due to all the things running through my head. I was worried about fixing the basement, fixing this stupid house, worried about our second adoption, worried about Bunny, worried about everything.
My emotions were rising to the surface when it came to nap time. Bunny looked at me and promised she would nap or play in her room quietly. I needed this one thing from her. I needed some time to compose myself before the plumber came.
But like so many times before and I am sure so many more times to come, what I wanted and what I needed did not matter. The only thing that mattered to her was what she wanted. And at that time, what she wanted to do ended up breaking me down. I could hear her running around, pulling every toy off the shelf, opening the door and running into my room. I could hear her calling for me "Momma, momma, momma. I'm not going to sleep. I don't want to play up here."
I went upstairs 4 times explaining to her that she needed to have some quiet time. "I don't wanna, momma." "Please." "No!" The fifth time finally did it. As I was walking up the stairs she was running back and forth between her room and mine. I asked her to listen to me and she refused.
Right at that moment all of the frustration and exhaustion broke through the little cracks in my resolve and came rushing out in a torrent of tears. I could not plug up the cracks any more. I had to let the tears flow or I would be swept away. I sat down at the top of the stairs and let the emotion overcome me, my body shuddering with the weight of everything I was feeling.
Finally I regained some measure of control and looked for Bunny. My display did not seem to affect her as I thought it would have. I thought her seeing me like this would have scared her, as it had scared me. But it did not. In fact, she continued to run from room to room, slamming and opening doors, laughing the entire time.
I knew that she could not possibly understand what it was like to have the weight of the world crushing in on you. No, I would protect her from that for as long as I could. I wanted her to stay that happy, carefree little girl. But I also wanted her to play quietly in her room.
Luckily for me and my sanity, we managed to come to an agreement. She played in her room the entire time the plumber was here, not fixing anything (but that is a story for another day).
Thursday, January 29, 2009
No, Seriously, I Was Just Walking
A while back I wrote a guest post for IMommy in which I stated to the world that I was not a funny person, however I do possess a rare gift for physical comedy. Unfortunately for me the physical aspect of physical comedy involves me walking in to something and injuring myself. Its less Jim Carrey and more Chevy Chase playing Gerald Ford tripping down the stairs of an airplane (or maybe just Gerald Ford falling). And yes I am sure that there are many of you saying What? Who?
I am a clumsy person. Its not my fault, its genetic. I'm not casting blame but the person who I inherited it from knows who they are, and thank you so much.
I have good balance so I rarely fall on my arse (although I have in the past and it is hilarious). My clumsiness, unfortunately, involves something much more basic - the inabilty to walk with out injuring myself.
I'm sure you are saying to yourself "Renee, how can you injure yourself walking if you don't fall down?" Trust me its easy. Walking often involves passing stationary objects like tables, chairs, desks and doors. Most people can avoid those objects while they are walking. Not me. These seemingly inanimate objects magically spring to life when I walk by jumping out at the last second causing me to run into them.
I cannot tell you how many times I have had bruises on my shin (thank you, coffee table), hips (thanks tables, desks and door knobs) and arms (shelves, cabinets thanks so much). I have even managed to break bones while walking. Not once but twice. Yes, I've broken two toes while walking.
The first time I tripped over a raised portion of the sidewalk while wearing flip flops. My big toe slammed right into the offending piece of concrete causing it to jam and the joint attaching the toe to the foot to fracture. I figured I broke it but it hurt so bad for so long that I actually went to the doctor and had x-rays. All I got was confirmation that it was broken and the there's nothing we can do for you speech. I'm sure the doctor was thinking "Congratulations, you're an idiot!"
The second time was yesterday and was just as embarrassing. I had taken Bunny to an open gym. I spent the better part of an hour and a half making sure that she didn't injure herself. And the second we decided to leave, I injured myself. Brilliant!
We were heading toward the exit and I was walking past the balance beam. Apparently I didn't realize how close I was to the beam and how far out the beam foot sticks out because I walked right into it. Again, brilliant! I hit it hard with the tops of my toes.
I knew right away it was broken. I started seeing stars and kind of screamed. Lucky for me I didn't let loose with a stream of obscenities because Bunny was right next to me saying "What's wrong momma?" "Nothing sweetie, momma broke her toe. Like an idiot."
I managed to put my shoe on without passing out from the pain and drive us home. I thank my stars that it was the left foot or I don't think I could have driven the car. It hurt that bad. When we got home and I removed my shoes and socks I was treated to a wonderful site, a swollen purplish toe. The purple almost exactly matched the reminants of my last pedicure so I at least was color coordinated.
So now begins the long and slow recovery process where I have to watch that I don't stub my toe again. Which as you can see is pretty difficult for me not to do.
I am a clumsy person. Its not my fault, its genetic. I'm not casting blame but the person who I inherited it from knows who they are, and thank you so much.
I have good balance so I rarely fall on my arse (although I have in the past and it is hilarious). My clumsiness, unfortunately, involves something much more basic - the inabilty to walk with out injuring myself.
I'm sure you are saying to yourself "Renee, how can you injure yourself walking if you don't fall down?" Trust me its easy. Walking often involves passing stationary objects like tables, chairs, desks and doors. Most people can avoid those objects while they are walking. Not me. These seemingly inanimate objects magically spring to life when I walk by jumping out at the last second causing me to run into them.
I cannot tell you how many times I have had bruises on my shin (thank you, coffee table), hips (thanks tables, desks and door knobs) and arms (shelves, cabinets thanks so much). I have even managed to break bones while walking. Not once but twice. Yes, I've broken two toes while walking.
The first time I tripped over a raised portion of the sidewalk while wearing flip flops. My big toe slammed right into the offending piece of concrete causing it to jam and the joint attaching the toe to the foot to fracture. I figured I broke it but it hurt so bad for so long that I actually went to the doctor and had x-rays. All I got was confirmation that it was broken and the there's nothing we can do for you speech. I'm sure the doctor was thinking "Congratulations, you're an idiot!"
The second time was yesterday and was just as embarrassing. I had taken Bunny to an open gym. I spent the better part of an hour and a half making sure that she didn't injure herself. And the second we decided to leave, I injured myself. Brilliant!
We were heading toward the exit and I was walking past the balance beam. Apparently I didn't realize how close I was to the beam and how far out the beam foot sticks out because I walked right into it. Again, brilliant! I hit it hard with the tops of my toes.
I knew right away it was broken. I started seeing stars and kind of screamed. Lucky for me I didn't let loose with a stream of obscenities because Bunny was right next to me saying "What's wrong momma?" "Nothing sweetie, momma broke her toe. Like an idiot."
I managed to put my shoe on without passing out from the pain and drive us home. I thank my stars that it was the left foot or I don't think I could have driven the car. It hurt that bad. When we got home and I removed my shoes and socks I was treated to a wonderful site, a swollen purplish toe. The purple almost exactly matched the reminants of my last pedicure so I at least was color coordinated.
So now begins the long and slow recovery process where I have to watch that I don't stub my toe again. Which as you can see is pretty difficult for me not to do.
Tuesday, January 13, 2009
Computer Trouble - Help
So my eyboard has decded to drop some letters. They just don't wor anymore.
These are the ones we have:
abcdefghjlmnopqrstuvwxyz
Do you now how many tmes you use the mssng letters? Alot.
'm pretty sure ths wll not fx tself. Can you just buy a eyboard to hoo up to a laptop to fx the problem?
So now there are two computers on the frtz. So broe down and made an appontment to fx the other computer so at least one wll wor. But 'm not sure how long that wll tae.
f there are no posts for a whle ths s why. No e-mals for a whle ether sorry. Because typng le ths s embarrassng.
Edited to add New keyboard installed and working. We have I and K again and I am so happy. I still want to get the Mac fixed and maybe replace this one too. But at least we are working again!
These are the ones we have:
abcdefghjlmnopqrstuvwxyz
Do you now how many tmes you use the mssng letters? Alot.
'm pretty sure ths wll not fx tself. Can you just buy a eyboard to hoo up to a laptop to fx the problem?
So now there are two computers on the frtz. So broe down and made an appontment to fx the other computer so at least one wll wor. But 'm not sure how long that wll tae.
f there are no posts for a whle ths s why. No e-mals for a whle ether sorry. Because typng le ths s embarrassng.
Edited to add New keyboard installed and working. We have I and K again and I am so happy. I still want to get the Mac fixed and maybe replace this one too. But at least we are working again!
Tuesday, August 19, 2008
Little Miss Fix-It
First an update on the basement repairs. They've are running a double crew and are going to finish ahead of schedule. Yes! Edited to add: They finished at 10:30 this morning! Now the real work starts.
Last night I was finishing making dinner and Bunny was watching the bug movie on her little DVD player with Bubs. Bunny came into the kitchen holding a picture. I oohed and ahhed over the picture.
Then she asked for tape. I figured she just wanted to add her picture to the collection hanging over my computer so I gave it to her. I realize that wasn't the smartest move, giving a toddler tape, but I figured her father was supervising.
Then he called me into the dining room, "come see what your daughter is doing." My daughter? That can't be good.
So I head into the dining room in time enough to see Bunny putting tape on the DVD player. WTF? I turn to Bubs for an explaination. It seems the player stopped working so Bunny decided to fix it with tape. It works for her books so she has decided if something is broken, it can be fixed with tape.
Of course she was only using Scotch tape so it didn't work. If it was duct tape, it probably would have worked because duct tape can fix anything.
Last night I was finishing making dinner and Bunny was watching the bug movie on her little DVD player with Bubs. Bunny came into the kitchen holding a picture. I oohed and ahhed over the picture.
Then she asked for tape. I figured she just wanted to add her picture to the collection hanging over my computer so I gave it to her. I realize that wasn't the smartest move, giving a toddler tape, but I figured her father was supervising.
Then he called me into the dining room, "come see what your daughter is doing." My daughter? That can't be good.
So I head into the dining room in time enough to see Bunny putting tape on the DVD player. WTF? I turn to Bubs for an explaination. It seems the player stopped working so Bunny decided to fix it with tape. It works for her books so she has decided if something is broken, it can be fixed with tape.
Of course she was only using Scotch tape so it didn't work. If it was duct tape, it probably would have worked because duct tape can fix anything.
Monday, August 18, 2008
Home Improvement
Not that the CrapShack needs it or anything, but today they are finally starting work on our basement.
Its been about 4 months since we first noticed water in our basement. The basement was finished, it was our family room and Bunny's playroom. We moved everything we could into the living room and have been living in cramped quarters ever since.
At first we thought we could get the work done in May or June. But now its mid-August and its just starting. And once they finish the waterproofing work, we still have to re-do the basement, fixing dry wall and installing new flooring. We'd like to make some improvements as well. Its no telling how long that will take.
I'll be happy to get back in the basement by Christmas.
Its been about 4 months since we first noticed water in our basement. The basement was finished, it was our family room and Bunny's playroom. We moved everything we could into the living room and have been living in cramped quarters ever since.
At first we thought we could get the work done in May or June. But now its mid-August and its just starting. And once they finish the waterproofing work, we still have to re-do the basement, fixing dry wall and installing new flooring. We'd like to make some improvements as well. Its no telling how long that will take.
I'll be happy to get back in the basement by Christmas.
Thursday, June 12, 2008
Car Troubles - Hooptie or Bust
So it would seem that only having one car seat in a two car family has come back to bite us on the preverbial a$$.
Yesterday we were driving around with Bunny minding our own business, when weird noises started coming out of the back of the Pathfinder (yes I drive an SUV - don't hate me please). We stopped to check it out and it turns out the muffler is loose. Its swinging around and bouncing up and down.
So of course its only a matter of time before the muffler breaks free and either drags on the ground or drops off altogether. Now of course both are attractive options and will classify the otherwise good truck as a hooptie. Classy.
So we need to get it fixed, sooner rather than later. Even if we could transfer the car seat from my car to Bubs', he has meetings out of the office today and a turf managment study (golf) tomorrow. So Bunny and I would be stuck without a car.
The other option is to drive to our mechanic, take out the stroller and walk back. This is doable, its only about a mile and a half. But its supposed to rain today and tomorrow so with my luck we'd get rained on. And of course the mechanic isn't opened on Saturdays or Sundays.
So I guess its hooptie or bust this weekend.
Yesterday we were driving around with Bunny minding our own business, when weird noises started coming out of the back of the Pathfinder (yes I drive an SUV - don't hate me please). We stopped to check it out and it turns out the muffler is loose. Its swinging around and bouncing up and down.
So of course its only a matter of time before the muffler breaks free and either drags on the ground or drops off altogether. Now of course both are attractive options and will classify the otherwise good truck as a hooptie. Classy.
So we need to get it fixed, sooner rather than later. Even if we could transfer the car seat from my car to Bubs', he has meetings out of the office today and a turf managment study (golf) tomorrow. So Bunny and I would be stuck without a car.
The other option is to drive to our mechanic, take out the stroller and walk back. This is doable, its only about a mile and a half. But its supposed to rain today and tomorrow so with my luck we'd get rained on. And of course the mechanic isn't opened on Saturdays or Sundays.
So I guess its hooptie or bust this weekend.
Thursday, May 1, 2008
Mom its broken, mom its broken
Our house is broken. There is really no other way of putting it, its just flat out broken. We have an upstairs bathroom with a leaky shower and our basement leaks. See its really broken.
The shower has leaked for about 4 years. Everything else in th bathroom works but the shower. Luckily we had another tub and shower on the first floor so we were able to stop using it immediately. But we haven't been able to fix it because our roof leaked and was fixed first (See what I mean about broken - stupid old houses. Did I mention the new furnace and electrical work?). Then we needed to save up money for Bunny's adoption. (The choice between adoption and remodeling is really a no brainer.) It doesn't put too much strain on our day to day life, but it would be nice to have two working showers.
Well we decided to fix the bathroom this year. We figured between savings and our home equity loan we'd be able to completely redo the bathroom and still pursue our second adoption. We were excited about that.
But then it snowed almost 100 inches in Milwaukee this year and we started to get water in our basement when it melted. Now our basement was a finished family room. We had our TV down there and it was also Bunny's playroom. It had to be fixed right away, no question about it. So we tore up the carpet and got estimates for the work.
Everytime Bunny walks past the stairs to the basement, she looks down and says "Can't go down there, its broken. Daddy fix broken."
Hopefully the work will begin later this month or in early June. But then we will have to redo the basement once its done. So we will be without that room for a few months more. Now all of Bunny's toys are strewn about the living room and dining room. We've moved the TV up there too. Its not as comfortable as it was before but we can live with it for a few months. And apparently we can live another year without the new bathroom too.
Now you may ask why don't we do some of the remodel ourselves and save money. Maybe that way we can get both done. Well you see my beloved Bubs is not really handy at all. He can use a screwdriver, a hammer and nails and even a drill. He can assemble furniture. But that is really about it. Since I love him and all of his limbs, I would never ask him to touch a power tool nor would he ever offer too.
My mom keeps telling us to sell the house and buy a newer home with less problems. Because people like us should not own old homes. Well that's great in theory but you can't sell a broken house in this market. So here we sit with our stupid broken house and I've completely forgotten why I wanted to buy it in the first place.
So the moral of the story is don't buy an old house, unless you are handy with more than just a hammer and nails.
The shower has leaked for about 4 years. Everything else in th bathroom works but the shower. Luckily we had another tub and shower on the first floor so we were able to stop using it immediately. But we haven't been able to fix it because our roof leaked and was fixed first (See what I mean about broken - stupid old houses. Did I mention the new furnace and electrical work?). Then we needed to save up money for Bunny's adoption. (The choice between adoption and remodeling is really a no brainer.) It doesn't put too much strain on our day to day life, but it would be nice to have two working showers.
Well we decided to fix the bathroom this year. We figured between savings and our home equity loan we'd be able to completely redo the bathroom and still pursue our second adoption. We were excited about that.
But then it snowed almost 100 inches in Milwaukee this year and we started to get water in our basement when it melted. Now our basement was a finished family room. We had our TV down there and it was also Bunny's playroom. It had to be fixed right away, no question about it. So we tore up the carpet and got estimates for the work.
Everytime Bunny walks past the stairs to the basement, she looks down and says "Can't go down there, its broken. Daddy fix broken."
Hopefully the work will begin later this month or in early June. But then we will have to redo the basement once its done. So we will be without that room for a few months more. Now all of Bunny's toys are strewn about the living room and dining room. We've moved the TV up there too. Its not as comfortable as it was before but we can live with it for a few months. And apparently we can live another year without the new bathroom too.
Now you may ask why don't we do some of the remodel ourselves and save money. Maybe that way we can get both done. Well you see my beloved Bubs is not really handy at all. He can use a screwdriver, a hammer and nails and even a drill. He can assemble furniture. But that is really about it. Since I love him and all of his limbs, I would never ask him to touch a power tool nor would he ever offer too.
My mom keeps telling us to sell the house and buy a newer home with less problems. Because people like us should not own old homes. Well that's great in theory but you can't sell a broken house in this market. So here we sit with our stupid broken house and I've completely forgotten why I wanted to buy it in the first place.
So the moral of the story is don't buy an old house, unless you are handy with more than just a hammer and nails.
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