Tales from the Steppes

2005-12-20

8:38 a.m.
Tuesday, December 20

Tempus ad est gratiae,
Hoc quod optabamus
- Steeleye Span

The MM nearly pulled a Klosky last night. The YM had a school holiday concert and I was insistent that the entire family attend. Usually I am the only one who goes to these things but I think it is important that everyone go - after all, the boys attend at least one of the EM's dance performances. Fair is fair. And the SU can get off of work a few minutes early as well.

So back to the story. I had had Chinese food delivered, the YM's request, and was chivying the Mongols along so we would not be late. I was taking something back to the kitchen and as I passed my office door, water fell on my head. I stood there doing the zeta brain wave thing for a second, realized there was only one place it could have come from and ran up to the upstairs bathroom. Which was completely flooded.

It seems that while the MM was washing his hands, in between using the bathroom and eating dinner, he spaced out and left the water running. The running water forced the stopper into the drain, the sink overflowed, flooded the vanity, ruining almost everything in it, and then into the floor and walls. And into my office below, into a cardboard portfolio of my work.

Sigh. Well, at least he washed his hands. And it wasn't my computer that got soaked. Boy, that is a sad statement. I'd rather have my irreplaceable work ruined than my computer. But at least the plaster walls do not appear to be ruined and we will see about the vanity. It would not break my heart to have to redo the upstairs bathroom, I would just rather pick my time than have it chosen for me.

So I used up every towel in the house in my attempt to sop up the water. The SU had not even left work yet, which makes me wonder how he was going to make it to the YM's concert on time, and I had him come straight home to check the plaster. The EM and MM took over the last of the water removal efforts and I left with the YM for the concert. We were a little late but they had not actually left the milling around on stage portion of the proceedings. So he got to sing with his class and I got to enjoy the concert.

And then to the mall for shopping, after getting the YM home and ready for bed. Tonight may be a repeat of this set of activities, only it will be the MM's holiday concert. Hopefully there will be no more waterfalls in my house. At least I do not have to worry about the EM losing her cell phone today.

Because she already did that yesterday.

Oh, I'm sorry. It was stolen from her coat pocket as she was changing for dance class at school. I made the mistake of asking why it was in her coat pocket and not in her locker, as the school requires, and got a convoluted, incomprehensible story. I should know better than to ask "why" about anything from a child. I always end up shaking my head in wonder and astonishment. Fortunately I had purchased insurance on the phone and she can replace it for $50.

But she doesn't have that sort of money right now because she had to spend some to replace her glasses that she left on the bus one day a couple of weeks ago. I have given her a way to make this money that may actually help me while adding to the educational component. She is going to scrub both bathrooms and the kitchen in preperation for our party Saturday night.

The SU had been trying to convince me to hire someone to help out with these tasks and I had been resisting. It is a philosophical thing - I've always felt that if you make a mess, you should clean it up yourself. Which is not to say that I clean up every single mess that I make, but that it balances out in the end. I just have a problem with the entitlement mindset that some people get about cleaning - cleaning is for other people, not them. But I was actually prepared to relent, as this was for a one time occasion. And there is the fact that, in this case, I consider it ruder to entertain with unclean bathrooms than to violate my personal philosophy.

My biggest hope that this will be a more painful experience for her than me. We have already had the "no whining" talk about getting the work done. I am not holding my breath though.