It's supposed to be 80 today. Not even the middle of March, and eighty degrees. And it's nice. So often eighty is hot and sticky and just plain miserable.Not today.
Today has that "it's summertime and the livin' is easy" feel to it. Enjoy it while it lasts. If we're getting a comfortable 80 degrees before the middle of March, it's not going to be long before the' hot and sticky' sneaks in. Too soon the eighties will be the uncomfortable low temp, while thunderstorms rumble and tornadoes strike in the night.
I sit on the porch and watch my granddaughter playing in the yard. The grass is green, the trees are budding, the neighbors are dragging out their porch furniture and sorting it into front porch and back porch. It's a sunshiny day, with a kiss of breeze.
It's summertime, and the livin' is easy.
Enjoy.
Wednesday, March 14, 2012
Sunday, March 11, 2012
I Concede to Spring
Much as I wanted to put it off, hoping yet for a Big One to wrap up winter (not impossible but unlikely), I have to give in and admit that it's Spring. Tornadoes have already been wiping out whole towns and taking bites out of others. Temperatures are getting warmer. The clocks have been set forward in the yearly joke that doing so creates more daylight in a 24 hour day. (That one day is a 25 hour day -- maybe it's that hour of daylight they are thinking of.)
But none of these are the deciding factor for me. These things are all indicators of Spring, but they are not the boiled-down essence of Spring.
I admitted it might be Spring when I came home from the grocery store with two boxes of flower seeds.
I conceded that it is indeed Spring today when the man across the street mowed his lawn.
I observed, long ago, that the definitive signs of Spring are when women start talking flowers and men start talking mowers. This is a general rule of thumb, not a defining of genders. Go to a bar, a diner, a store and listen to the bull talk sessions. Then, you'll know it's spring when women talk flowers and men talk mowers.
When they actually do something about it, then it really is Spring.
But none of these are the deciding factor for me. These things are all indicators of Spring, but they are not the boiled-down essence of Spring.
I admitted it might be Spring when I came home from the grocery store with two boxes of flower seeds.
I conceded that it is indeed Spring today when the man across the street mowed his lawn.
I observed, long ago, that the definitive signs of Spring are when women start talking flowers and men start talking mowers. This is a general rule of thumb, not a defining of genders. Go to a bar, a diner, a store and listen to the bull talk sessions. Then, you'll know it's spring when women talk flowers and men talk mowers.
When they actually do something about it, then it really is Spring.
Wednesday, March 7, 2012
Lesson Learned.
I recently saw an online ad for classes about alternative medicines. This is a subject I've long been interested in, and the thought of online classes is -- kind of interesting, especially now that I'm not working, and my husband's no longer in a health crisis. So, two weeks ago, I signed up for info.
When I signed, I did see that I had to give the school permission to call me, and that was okay. I might have questions for them, once I reviewed their online programs or looked at their literature. Follow-up phone calls are a fine thing, in most cases.
Oh. My. God.
What a mistake that was.
Not just a small mistake, either.
I have gotten phone calls.
And phone calls.
And phone calls.
Since 12 noon yesterday, until 12 noon today, I have had twelve phone calls from one number. This is after I put the number on the reject list because they have not stopped calling daily for two weeks. The calls started immediately, and have not lessened.
I have not received one e-mail from any of these schools. (Apparently there's a list of affiliates with a variety of courses, although I was applying for specific classes.) I have not received any type of information other than these incessant psycho calls. (Seriously, if these calls were being made by an individual to an individual, they would be considered psycho calls.) No e-mails, though that had to be on the sign in. No pamphlets in the mail, although mailing address had to be included.
Just phone calls.
Sorry, Ashford University.
Sorry, Kaplan College.
I don't care for the way you do business. So, I won't be doing business with you.
I do not need financial aid until I've decided when I want to take classes and what classes I might want to take. I won't know what those classes are until I see what is offered. See. With my eyes. So I can look and consider, re-look and reconsider.
I want information about what I'm interested in, not about everything else that's out there in the world. I know there's a lot of good interesting stuff out there. But I signed up to find out about a specific field, not the whole world.
If I want to hear from you, after I've seen what you have to offer, I'll call you.
Don't hold your breath.
When I signed, I did see that I had to give the school permission to call me, and that was okay. I might have questions for them, once I reviewed their online programs or looked at their literature. Follow-up phone calls are a fine thing, in most cases.
Oh. My. God.
What a mistake that was.
Not just a small mistake, either.
I have gotten phone calls.
And phone calls.
And phone calls.
Since 12 noon yesterday, until 12 noon today, I have had twelve phone calls from one number. This is after I put the number on the reject list because they have not stopped calling daily for two weeks. The calls started immediately, and have not lessened.
I have not received one e-mail from any of these schools. (Apparently there's a list of affiliates with a variety of courses, although I was applying for specific classes.) I have not received any type of information other than these incessant psycho calls. (Seriously, if these calls were being made by an individual to an individual, they would be considered psycho calls.) No e-mails, though that had to be on the sign in. No pamphlets in the mail, although mailing address had to be included.
Just phone calls.
Sorry, Ashford University.
Sorry, Kaplan College.
I don't care for the way you do business. So, I won't be doing business with you.
I do not need financial aid until I've decided when I want to take classes and what classes I might want to take. I won't know what those classes are until I see what is offered. See. With my eyes. So I can look and consider, re-look and reconsider.
I want information about what I'm interested in, not about everything else that's out there in the world. I know there's a lot of good interesting stuff out there. But I signed up to find out about a specific field, not the whole world.
If I want to hear from you, after I've seen what you have to offer, I'll call you.
Don't hold your breath.
Sunday, March 4, 2012
Mother Nature on a Rampage
Usually I try to vary the topics of my entries, but this week has been a little two sided. (I would say one-sided, but there are two subjects going on.) Weather and trees. Towns and tornadoes.
The trees I'll have to put on the back burner for now -- or maybe not. Mother Nature decided to give a head start on some of the tree removals. Just ripped and twisted and tossed the trees around a bit. Maybe she's upset with the puny men who are trying to undo her work, or who think they can do her job better than she does.
The puny men (USDA) have requested that anyone with damaged trees inspect them for the beetle. Don't know why they can't do this part of their job themselves, now that Mother has made it easier for them.
And residents and workers are wondering if they are supposed to suspend operations and wait for these people to approve their labors.
Will people have to remain homeless and powerless -- certainly in more than one sense of the word -- while the government contractors twiddle their fingers waiting for others to do their jobs for them?
They are already onsite, or close enough. You would think they'd be in there before the rest. Just think of all the extra man-hours they could bill taxpayers for, under the circumstances.
Moscow Ohio, Clermont County, on the river, was hard hit. Moscow has been around for close to 300 years, but the historic town is said to have no two story buildings anymore. The brand new business that was building now has no building to finish up. Time will tell if they rebuild. Time and insurance, probably.
More damage was done in the Felicity-Bethel-Hamersville area. How lovely. That's exactly where my sister lives. She was driving home from Hamersville.
There was serious damage in other places as well. The Weather Service declared a tornado emergency in Clermont County, in Ohio. Most of us, including the meteorologists, had no idea what that even means. It took help from my brother in Kansas and the weathermen making phone calls before we knew it means multiple twisters from the same storm on the ground at the same time.
We don't get that here.
It's been an eventful week. Between Big Brother and Earth's Mother, our metaphorical and metaphysical family has kept us hopping. And some are hurting for their actual family. My family was fortunate. Most of the people I know were fortunate.
But some weren't, and I don't think they will be worrying about bugs in trees. They have Life and Death to deal with.
The trees I'll have to put on the back burner for now -- or maybe not. Mother Nature decided to give a head start on some of the tree removals. Just ripped and twisted and tossed the trees around a bit. Maybe she's upset with the puny men who are trying to undo her work, or who think they can do her job better than she does.
The puny men (USDA) have requested that anyone with damaged trees inspect them for the beetle. Don't know why they can't do this part of their job themselves, now that Mother has made it easier for them.
And residents and workers are wondering if they are supposed to suspend operations and wait for these people to approve their labors.
Will people have to remain homeless and powerless -- certainly in more than one sense of the word -- while the government contractors twiddle their fingers waiting for others to do their jobs for them?
They are already onsite, or close enough. You would think they'd be in there before the rest. Just think of all the extra man-hours they could bill taxpayers for, under the circumstances.
Moscow Ohio, Clermont County, on the river, was hard hit. Moscow has been around for close to 300 years, but the historic town is said to have no two story buildings anymore. The brand new business that was building now has no building to finish up. Time will tell if they rebuild. Time and insurance, probably.
More damage was done in the Felicity-Bethel-Hamersville area. How lovely. That's exactly where my sister lives. She was driving home from Hamersville.
There was serious damage in other places as well. The Weather Service declared a tornado emergency in Clermont County, in Ohio. Most of us, including the meteorologists, had no idea what that even means. It took help from my brother in Kansas and the weathermen making phone calls before we knew it means multiple twisters from the same storm on the ground at the same time.
We don't get that here.
It's been an eventful week. Between Big Brother and Earth's Mother, our metaphorical and metaphysical family has kept us hopping. And some are hurting for their actual family. My family was fortunate. Most of the people I know were fortunate.
But some weren't, and I don't think they will be worrying about bugs in trees. They have Life and Death to deal with.
Thursday, March 1, 2012
Saving the Healthy Trees by Cara Bowen, age 11
Saving the Healthy Trees
by Cara Bowen, age 11
Can you imagine hundreds of thousands of trees being cut down in one little area? Well that's what our government wants to do thanks to a little bug called the Asian Longhorned Beetle.
Bethel is having a big problem and the Asian Lonhorned Beetle is its name. The people of Bethel could have hundreds of thousands of trees cut down and about seven thousand are already cut. We have this group called the ALB Citizens Cooperative. They have meetings almost every week to talk about the trees. They also make plans for us. The plan now is they're trying to talk the government into chemically treating the healthy trees and only cutting down the infested ones.
There are alot of reasons why they should chemically treat instead of cut. Cutting that many healthy trees would mess up our eco system, all the trees gone will cause flooding and dirty water, and lots of animals homes would be taken away.
I have a woods in my backyard and it's probably getting cut down too. We use our woods for many reasons. We hunt in it, stack wood in it, and my friends, family and I play in it. We build forts in it, we go exploring, and we have our favorite clubhouse in it. What kind of fun can you have if you can't climb trees?!
Another reason is our beautiful view. If all the trees are gone, deer, turkey and other animals won't come. When it rains we'll have a big mudhole in our backyard, and our creek won't be a beautiful stream with flowers and green leaves around it. It would be a big mudbank with water running through it.
So Bethel is really going through alot right now and so many people already have what I just explained. For example, some people just moved to Bethel from New York City to a live in this beautiful house with trees lining the driveway and now it's a giant mudhole. So if you agree with me you should contact your government officials and help try to stop what they are trying to do. And if you are interested and want more information you can go to www.BethelALB.com.
by Cara Bowen, age 11
Can you imagine hundreds of thousands of trees being cut down in one little area? Well that's what our government wants to do thanks to a little bug called the Asian Longhorned Beetle.
Bethel is having a big problem and the Asian Lonhorned Beetle is its name. The people of Bethel could have hundreds of thousands of trees cut down and about seven thousand are already cut. We have this group called the ALB Citizens Cooperative. They have meetings almost every week to talk about the trees. They also make plans for us. The plan now is they're trying to talk the government into chemically treating the healthy trees and only cutting down the infested ones.
There are alot of reasons why they should chemically treat instead of cut. Cutting that many healthy trees would mess up our eco system, all the trees gone will cause flooding and dirty water, and lots of animals homes would be taken away.
I have a woods in my backyard and it's probably getting cut down too. We use our woods for many reasons. We hunt in it, stack wood in it, and my friends, family and I play in it. We build forts in it, we go exploring, and we have our favorite clubhouse in it. What kind of fun can you have if you can't climb trees?!
Another reason is our beautiful view. If all the trees are gone, deer, turkey and other animals won't come. When it rains we'll have a big mudhole in our backyard, and our creek won't be a beautiful stream with flowers and green leaves around it. It would be a big mudbank with water running through it.
So Bethel is really going through alot right now and so many people already have what I just explained. For example, some people just moved to Bethel from New York City to a live in this beautiful house with trees lining the driveway and now it's a giant mudhole. So if you agree with me you should contact your government officials and help try to stop what they are trying to do. And if you are interested and want more information you can go to www.BethelALB.com.
Blown away -- Mild winter to Wild Spring
I guess it's official. The Winter that wasn't is over. We had tornadoes across the middle of our country yesterday.
Tornadoes! In February?
All too often, the result of a mild winter is a wild spring -- and summer, and fall. I've seem tornadoes into November. But starting in February? Even in tornado alley, that's unprecedented.
And they came at night, roaring into and through the lives of the sleeping, turning night time into a time of horror and dread. How many people, old and young, are going to have PTSD at bedtime for the rest of their lives.
Tornadoes scare the hell out of me. Night time tornadoes, like these, are terrifying to think of. Way too many people had to live that terror -- and some of them did not survive it.
The big news is Branson Missouri, a town that made itself into something newsworthy. It's big claim to fame is that they can put on big shows with big stars. Fortunately -- let's all take a big sigh of relief -- it's not yet 'the season' and there were no celebrities to be displaced or disturbed or wakened. Thank God for that! Let no one, not even Mother Nature, disturb the stars.
In the meantime, Harveyville Kansas, Harrisburg Illinois, Elizabethtown Kentucky are among the places digging out the dead and injured and just plain stuck. These are among the places trying to find where to even start digging out. These are among the places that may have had F-4 or F-5 twisters, and whose towns have been permanently marred.
But, Let us all be happy that Branson (where the storm was F-2) hasn't been destroyed and suffered relatively minor damage. The stars still have a place to play come summer.
Thank goodness everyone is not so blind as the media. Rescue efforts are underway and helping hands being extended to ALL the places and people in need. I'd like to especially commend Lowe's, who must keep a rescue team ready. They are already responding with donations and helping hands, to crossroad towns and small cities alike. Thank you.
And thank you to everyone who is doing what they can, if it's only a brief prayer between pouring cups of coffee or changing diapers.
It's going to be a long season. Keep ready, everyone. Don't be caught sleeping.
Tornadoes! In February?
All too often, the result of a mild winter is a wild spring -- and summer, and fall. I've seem tornadoes into November. But starting in February? Even in tornado alley, that's unprecedented.
And they came at night, roaring into and through the lives of the sleeping, turning night time into a time of horror and dread. How many people, old and young, are going to have PTSD at bedtime for the rest of their lives.
Tornadoes scare the hell out of me. Night time tornadoes, like these, are terrifying to think of. Way too many people had to live that terror -- and some of them did not survive it.
The big news is Branson Missouri, a town that made itself into something newsworthy. It's big claim to fame is that they can put on big shows with big stars. Fortunately -- let's all take a big sigh of relief -- it's not yet 'the season' and there were no celebrities to be displaced or disturbed or wakened. Thank God for that! Let no one, not even Mother Nature, disturb the stars.
In the meantime, Harveyville Kansas, Harrisburg Illinois, Elizabethtown Kentucky are among the places digging out the dead and injured and just plain stuck. These are among the places trying to find where to even start digging out. These are among the places that may have had F-4 or F-5 twisters, and whose towns have been permanently marred.
But, Let us all be happy that Branson (where the storm was F-2) hasn't been destroyed and suffered relatively minor damage. The stars still have a place to play come summer.
Thank goodness everyone is not so blind as the media. Rescue efforts are underway and helping hands being extended to ALL the places and people in need. I'd like to especially commend Lowe's, who must keep a rescue team ready. They are already responding with donations and helping hands, to crossroad towns and small cities alike. Thank you.
And thank you to everyone who is doing what they can, if it's only a brief prayer between pouring cups of coffee or changing diapers.
It's going to be a long season. Keep ready, everyone. Don't be caught sleeping.
Monday, February 27, 2012
Boring on about the Beetles
I realize that letting Mother Nature take care of things is against human nature. Besides, that will lead just as surely to the destruction of our beautiful hardwood trees as 'our' interference. The infested trees need to be removed and destroyed. Before they can infest and destroy healthy trees. Before even the stumps can infest the healthy.
The problem is what about the healthy trees. This is where the controversy is. The plan was to remove all the healthy trees that bordered on an infested tree. There are other options for healthy trees, but no one wants to implement them. They aren't 100% effective. (What is?) But isn't any percent effective better than wanton destruction?
www.bethelalb.com is a local source of information about this problem. Bethel is the center of the removals at this time. Just look at the pictures. What would you do/think/feel if this was your yard, your home? How would you feel if these were trees that had sheltered your parents, your selves, and your children? Would you be in favor of continuing destruction if it was in your neighborhood?
If you can help, please do. Talk to people about this issue. Spread the word. As small as the world is these days, it WILL be your backyard tomorrow. Not the beetles, the tree cutters.
Because who will stop them if we don't?
The problem is what about the healthy trees. This is where the controversy is. The plan was to remove all the healthy trees that bordered on an infested tree. There are other options for healthy trees, but no one wants to implement them. They aren't 100% effective. (What is?) But isn't any percent effective better than wanton destruction?
www.bethelalb.com is a local source of information about this problem. Bethel is the center of the removals at this time. Just look at the pictures. What would you do/think/feel if this was your yard, your home? How would you feel if these were trees that had sheltered your parents, your selves, and your children? Would you be in favor of continuing destruction if it was in your neighborhood?
If you can help, please do. Talk to people about this issue. Spread the word. As small as the world is these days, it WILL be your backyard tomorrow. Not the beetles, the tree cutters.
Because who will stop them if we don't?
Thursday, February 23, 2012
borers and beetles bug me
Yesterday, part of the background of my life was destroyed. Heritage trees were harvested, infested with the Asian longhorn beetle.
Three years ago, across the street from me, two beautifully shaped ash trees were removed, to prevent infestation with the emerald ash borer.
All our technology, all our education, and the only way the experts can think of to stop infestations is to destroy the trees themselves.
Near Bethel, my home town, they have already been taking down the maples. They go into peoples yards, fire up their chainsaws, and remove people's shade, remove their windbreaks, remove their family picnic spots, remove their landscapes and continue to change the architecture of the land.
It's unseemly.
www.BethelALB.com
And it's ugly.
The execution of the ash trees in Adams County has given us less beauty and less protection from nature. Trees are windbreaks, and trees prevent erosion of the soil from flooding. Trees provide a natural sound barrier along the unnatural freeways.
Now, the bare spots and the nakedness of the land are set loose in my home places, and everything changes forever.
Some say the trees will grow back. Some say that they won't all be destroyed. There are still elm trees (Dutch Elm Disease) and even an occasional chestnut (blight.)
There are also still gaps where the wind whistles, and houses that have fallen into raging -- creeks.
Infestations are bad, unless you're a borer or a beetle or another bug. They can eat up all the wood, and cause the trees to die standing and then infest the other trees. It's hard to watch trees you've known and loved get sick and die.
But even dead trees can continue to act as windbreaks and dams, something chopped down and chopped up and even uprooted trees can never do.
Did anyone think this through? Why are so many communities endorsing so quickly a 'cure' that's worse than the 'disease? Why not let Mother Nature decide what trees will survive and which ones won't?
She's been doing a pretty dammed good job for a lot longer than we have.
Three years ago, across the street from me, two beautifully shaped ash trees were removed, to prevent infestation with the emerald ash borer.
All our technology, all our education, and the only way the experts can think of to stop infestations is to destroy the trees themselves.
Near Bethel, my home town, they have already been taking down the maples. They go into peoples yards, fire up their chainsaws, and remove people's shade, remove their windbreaks, remove their family picnic spots, remove their landscapes and continue to change the architecture of the land.
It's unseemly.
www.BethelALB.com
And it's ugly.
The execution of the ash trees in Adams County has given us less beauty and less protection from nature. Trees are windbreaks, and trees prevent erosion of the soil from flooding. Trees provide a natural sound barrier along the unnatural freeways.
Now, the bare spots and the nakedness of the land are set loose in my home places, and everything changes forever.
Some say the trees will grow back. Some say that they won't all be destroyed. There are still elm trees (Dutch Elm Disease) and even an occasional chestnut (blight.)
There are also still gaps where the wind whistles, and houses that have fallen into raging -- creeks.
Infestations are bad, unless you're a borer or a beetle or another bug. They can eat up all the wood, and cause the trees to die standing and then infest the other trees. It's hard to watch trees you've known and loved get sick and die.
But even dead trees can continue to act as windbreaks and dams, something chopped down and chopped up and even uprooted trees can never do.
Did anyone think this through? Why are so many communities endorsing so quickly a 'cure' that's worse than the 'disease? Why not let Mother Nature decide what trees will survive and which ones won't?
She's been doing a pretty dammed good job for a lot longer than we have.
Monday, February 20, 2012
Routine Romance
It's amazing how boring genre romance novels can be after you've been reading outside that field. Thrillers. for instance, can be arson or kidnapping as well as murder or escape. Family saga or adventure type stuff is as varied as people.
Not that there aren't outstanding romance writers, even those that follow the formula. There are, and most of them grow away from the formulas and let their skills shine. It doesn't matter if the skills are character development, plot, description, or just a convoluted mind. Good story telling is good story telling.
The reason I'm bringing it up is because the genre publishers are really slipping up. Recent romances that I have read are full of typos, grammar errors, and just plain silliness. The problems are almost worth the reading. A recent novel referred to the smart guy and the tough guy pair as the brain and the bronze. Another book from the same publisher informed me that the man's heart raced, and then his pulse did too. (That one struck me as so funny I texted it to many of my writer friends.)
Why read, you might wonder, if the stories and story telling are so bad.
These books, these (incompetent) authors have been published. Like any Unknown Author, I would like to be published. The best advice is always to read what is getting out there.
But do you know what? I believe I'd rather remain an Unknown than to publicly display my idiocy, my editor's inattention, and my publisher's uncaringness for the whole world to see. There's nothing noteworthy in my people's pulse keeping up with their heartbeat, and my brains guy is the one who's bronzed. It might bake his brain, but he's still pretty. and the story is about the brawny guy anyway. He's so much more interesting!
There's an old saying about keeping silent and being thought a fool or opening your mouth and removing all doubt. I think that should apply to being published, too.
In the meantime, I have a list of publishers who are really good for a laugh.
Not that there aren't outstanding romance writers, even those that follow the formula. There are, and most of them grow away from the formulas and let their skills shine. It doesn't matter if the skills are character development, plot, description, or just a convoluted mind. Good story telling is good story telling.
The reason I'm bringing it up is because the genre publishers are really slipping up. Recent romances that I have read are full of typos, grammar errors, and just plain silliness. The problems are almost worth the reading. A recent novel referred to the smart guy and the tough guy pair as the brain and the bronze. Another book from the same publisher informed me that the man's heart raced, and then his pulse did too. (That one struck me as so funny I texted it to many of my writer friends.)
Why read, you might wonder, if the stories and story telling are so bad.
These books, these (incompetent) authors have been published. Like any Unknown Author, I would like to be published. The best advice is always to read what is getting out there.
But do you know what? I believe I'd rather remain an Unknown than to publicly display my idiocy, my editor's inattention, and my publisher's uncaringness for the whole world to see. There's nothing noteworthy in my people's pulse keeping up with their heartbeat, and my brains guy is the one who's bronzed. It might bake his brain, but he's still pretty. and the story is about the brawny guy anyway. He's so much more interesting!
There's an old saying about keeping silent and being thought a fool or opening your mouth and removing all doubt. I think that should apply to being published, too.
In the meantime, I have a list of publishers who are really good for a laugh.
Friday, February 17, 2012
Plunging in
Yesterday I had an adventure with the toilet.
I know that's not really enthralling, and probably something no one wants to hear about, but it ended up funny, and I love to share a laugh at myself. How can you get any fairer than that?
The toilet was stopped up. We flushed and plunged, flushed and plunged, flushed and plunged. It seemed endless, but there really are not that many hours in the day. It wasn't as long as it seemed. My husband was hopeless, giving up, mumbling about having to call a plumber or the landlord. (He'd rather call and pay a plumber. One of the reasons we -I- rent is so we can call the landlord.)
So, being an experienced toilet unstopper (teenage daughters at one time, need I say more?), I waited until the mopey mumbler went to sleep and I unearthed my toilet snake from behind the water heater.
I don't know how a toilet snake is different from any other snake, but to work it you put it in and you turn a handle. You turn and turn and turn.
Pretty soon, it felt like I'd been turning as long as we had been flushing earlier!
I kept turning, and push-pulling on the little handle thing. Then I'd turn some more.
Success at last! Gurgle gurgle, all the water that was up went down.
And I had to put the turn into reverse. It wouldn't go!
I had to pull. It wouldn't pull!
I had the snake stuck!
My now unclogged toilet was sitting there with this humongous spring in a couple of metal shafts. I'd never be able to use the toilet with that thing sticking out of it!
I'd unwind it a bit (the handle would turn after a tug), then pull a bit. It really didn't seem to be getting anywhere. Turn and tug, turn and tug, turn and tug.
In the meantime, while turning and tugging, I'm imagining calling a plumber or the landlord, and having to explain to them my plumbing emergency. What do you say? "Hello. I'm calling the plumber because I unstopped my toilet myself?"
"Hello, I need the toilet taken up in my house because there's a plumbing snake in it?"
And what would they actually do? Use metal cutters? Break the toilet?
Would anyone actually believe this story if I told it?
What is Rex going to say when he wakes up and has to pee into an observably clogged toilet? He's going to think I was really stupid!
Eventually, the turning and tugging did work, and I got the snake out, and the toilet has been working perfectly since. (The neighbor's toilet is probably working well, too.)
That was a new way of using the bathroom as a place of contemplation and imagination.
I know that's not really enthralling, and probably something no one wants to hear about, but it ended up funny, and I love to share a laugh at myself. How can you get any fairer than that?
The toilet was stopped up. We flushed and plunged, flushed and plunged, flushed and plunged. It seemed endless, but there really are not that many hours in the day. It wasn't as long as it seemed. My husband was hopeless, giving up, mumbling about having to call a plumber or the landlord. (He'd rather call and pay a plumber. One of the reasons we -I- rent is so we can call the landlord.)
So, being an experienced toilet unstopper (teenage daughters at one time, need I say more?), I waited until the mopey mumbler went to sleep and I unearthed my toilet snake from behind the water heater.
I don't know how a toilet snake is different from any other snake, but to work it you put it in and you turn a handle. You turn and turn and turn.
Pretty soon, it felt like I'd been turning as long as we had been flushing earlier!
I kept turning, and push-pulling on the little handle thing. Then I'd turn some more.
Success at last! Gurgle gurgle, all the water that was up went down.
And I had to put the turn into reverse. It wouldn't go!
I had to pull. It wouldn't pull!
I had the snake stuck!
My now unclogged toilet was sitting there with this humongous spring in a couple of metal shafts. I'd never be able to use the toilet with that thing sticking out of it!
I'd unwind it a bit (the handle would turn after a tug), then pull a bit. It really didn't seem to be getting anywhere. Turn and tug, turn and tug, turn and tug.
In the meantime, while turning and tugging, I'm imagining calling a plumber or the landlord, and having to explain to them my plumbing emergency. What do you say? "Hello. I'm calling the plumber because I unstopped my toilet myself?"
"Hello, I need the toilet taken up in my house because there's a plumbing snake in it?"
And what would they actually do? Use metal cutters? Break the toilet?
Would anyone actually believe this story if I told it?
What is Rex going to say when he wakes up and has to pee into an observably clogged toilet? He's going to think I was really stupid!
Eventually, the turning and tugging did work, and I got the snake out, and the toilet has been working perfectly since. (The neighbor's toilet is probably working well, too.)
That was a new way of using the bathroom as a place of contemplation and imagination.
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