Tuesday, January 25, 2011

Trouble, They Say, Comes in Threes

First, the fridge died. I came home to bloody meat, unfrozen frozen pizzas, and warm milk. So Michael called the landlord who said,
Landlord: I can't come until morning.
Michael: Oh. Well, what should we do with the food.
Landlord: Well, it's cold outside. Just put it outside.
Michael: Oh. Um...Okay...

So Michael went to Walmart and bought some Styrofoam coolers and fit what he could in them and put the rest of it on the chairs on the porch. We had frozen pizza for dinner, so Michael went back outside to get it. When he came in, I said:
Me: I just had a thought--can that stuff stay out there overnight? I mean, what about animals and stuff?
Michael: Oh, yeah, we need to figure something out. Let me start the pizza and then I'll deal with the rest of the stuff.
So he started the pizza and went back outside to find a bag of beef cubes (for stew) torn open and pieces of meat and blood on our welcome mat and on the porch! So, we put all the food in the car overnight, and Michael took it with him to work the next morning. The landlord did come the next morning, and we came home to a new fridge that afternoon.

That same day, though, the toilet was beginning to behave the way a person on his or her deathbed might: weak, making strange noises, coughing up things from deep inside... When the landlord came to deal with the fridge, he also brought a plumber with him to check on the toilet. They snaked it and didn't find anything, so the landlord told us just to keep an eye on it. A few days later, we hosted Bible Study at our house and moments before the first knock at the door, the toilet threw up all over the bathroom floor. Thankfully, there was any solid waste involved in the situation, but it didn't exactly make for an atmosphere to receive guests. Michael called the landlord the next morning,
Michael: The toilet overflowed last night.
Landlord: Ugggggghhhh.
He came and inspected it the next day, but told Michael he thought it was fine and to just keep watching it.

One day, shortly after the fridge incident but before the toilet/Bible Study incident, I went to Walmart to do some grocery shopping. I wandered around, taking my time, looking at things I didn't need and picking out some things I don't usually buy. After a while, I proceeded to check out, and the girl at the register scanned all my items and pronounced my total. I reached into my bad to get my wallet and fish out my debit card, except that my debit card was no where to be found. It was, as I instantly recalled, inside my little notebook that I had taken out of my purse to call the real estate agent. So, embarrassed, I asked the girl to cancel my order, I called Michael to bring me my card, and I sat in the Subway inside Walmart waiting for Michael. I am, apparently, not the first Walmart customer to pull such a stunt. When Michael arrived with my card, the girl scanned the canceled receipt and we paid and walked away with our purchases without having to un-bag or re-scan them.

Two out three good endings is not bad if you ask me. Though I'm okay with not having many more troubles.